


fortunate happenstance

by alicemitch09



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Coming of Age, Crushes, F/M, First Love, Fluff, Friendship, Growing Up, Hogwarts, Magical Creatures, School Life, Trigger Warnings in Future Chapters, but nothing too serious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-06
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2020-06-22 10:44:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 58,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19665844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alicemitch09/pseuds/alicemitch09
Summary: There was definitely a beauty in finding something truly magical without having to look hard for it. And it's got nothing to do with Hogwarts, being magical as it already was, but it was about a girl – isn't it always, Albus Potter met, who was more magical than she seemed. What a fun way to grow up.





	1. Prologue: Their First Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Prologue: Their First Meeting]_ **

Settling in his seat, Albus Severus Potter had his mind occupied with a lot of things.

Top of the list is where he’d be sorted to – Gryffindor or Slytherin. Though he came from a generation of Gryffindors, his father once sharing with him that he was supposed to be in Slytherin. Only, he didn’t. So possibly, it might be his turn. And that worried the young lad.

He heaved a heavy sigh, closing his eyes. The sound of his family chattering buzzed.

Although his dad had assured him that he shouldn’t have to worry where he’d be sorted to, he still couldn’t help but feel uneasy at the idea.

He didn’t mind being in Gryffindor, considering the most obvious reasons of his family being there (minus Louis and his sisters, who were in Hufflepuff). And after being encouraged by his dad, he also didn’t mind being in Slytherin. But quite frankly, he’s still uncertain and is very scared for himself. He wasn’t sure anymore.

Quite accustomed to his cousins’ chatter, Albus was surprised when their voices suddenly quieted down. He could hear their breathing.

Slowly opening his eyes, he found himself in for a surprise.

Out of nowhere, a girl appeared before him. Well, more of stood before him.

He was more than shocked to see her; how come he didn’t notice her enter? As a matter of fact, he wondered as to why no one said a word to him! His eyes shifted to his family, who were all suddenly caught up by the sudden presence of the girl before him.

Her appearance shocked Albus the most since he hadn't noticed her presence since he looked up. She looked to be just around his age. She had medium-length ebony black hair, fair skin, and had the most amazing pair of translucent purple eyes. She was clad in an oversized jumper over her dress and wore a pair of Mary Jane. And yet, despite the ridiculous combination of her fairy-like appearance and awful sense of fashion, he couldn't take his eyes off her.

She looked at him curiously. Her purple hues interlocked with his green ones. Her eyes flared with delight; a small impish smile played on her lips. He felt his face burning as the strange girl's face neared his. He was aware that his family was watching - James and Fred snickering in their seats, Rose and Roxanne grinning ear to ear at this strange new person.

"Don't..." she said lowly as she bent towards him, her breath fanning against his face. He swore he smelled chocolate and mint. "... _move_."

"W-What?"

Then, he felt slim fingers brush through his locks, trailing until he felt something being lifted off his head. Almost immediately, she took a step back with a grey Persian cat in her arms. He was rather surprised to have not felt the feline on his head!

"Thanks for not moving!" she says with a smile, taking a step back, the smile reflected in her eyes. The feline in her arms snuggled against her arms, making her smile even wider. "Oh, and sorry about this 'lil fella, she tends to run around a lot. And, she _hates_ being on trains."

Rose shakes her head, leaning over to rub her fingers behind the feline's ears. It purrs in delight.

"Are you a first year?" asks Roxanne curiously.

"Yup!"

"Splendid, just like our little Al." James says, screwing with his brother's hair much to his chagrin.

"I'm Rose Weasley by the way, I’m a first year as well, and these are my cousins, Fred and Roxanne Weasley,” she pointed at the siblings, Fred grinning toothily at her, Roxanne smiled. “and my other cousins, James and Albus Potter." James waved at her, Albus merely watched.

"Pleasure to be meeting you all!" she chirps happily with a small salute. They smile at her little gesture.

"That accent of yours, it sounds like a hybrid. English with a hint of...?" Fred couldn't help asking.

"Romanian." she supplies proudly, her pearly white teeth exposed. "I'm part Romanian, having been born and raised in Romania for the first few years of my life before moving to London because of my mum’s work."

“Oh? And what’s your mum’s work if you don’t mind me asking?” asks a terribly curious James. On cue, Rose, and Roxanne stare at him incredulously.

“That’s too personal, don’t you think?” asked Rose. They just knew her!

She, however, chose to laugh over this.

“No, it’s alright. My mum used to be an Auror, like my dad. They had to hunt down dark wizards lurking under the Muggle world. Frankly, it made for an interesting childhood actually.” She explains, adjusting the cat in her arms.

“Interesting, eh?” asks Fred.

She nods. “Oh, yes! Muggles are quite interesting actually! I mean, whatever would be the purpose of a rubber duck? And how they find us weird, they should look at themselves! They’re weirder!”

They laughed. She was a fun lass, very much bright and fun.

"What's your name?" Albus finds himself asking her, surprised to hear his voice for the first time.

She turns to him, almost immediately; Albus swore he felt his cheeks burn.

Her translucent eyes seem to get him; it was like a mirror to her soul.

"Oh! My name's-"

"Erin?" a female voice calls, making the said girl whips her head out the corridor.

"Ah, that must be my best friend. I almost forgot about her! So, I guess I'll see you all around?" they nod before she runs off, closing the door behind her. Moments later, it slides opens. "I’m Erin by the way, Erin Scott Alisdair." And with one last toothy grin, she closes the door, leaving the cousins at their wake.

With Erin gone, all eyes turned to Albus, the majority of which, were grinning wickedly.

"What?" he asked defensively, not liking the look in their faces.

His brother was grinning at him, screwing his head again. Rose and Roxanne exchange looks before grinning as well. Albus suddenly felt uncomfortable.

"If I didn't know better," Fred started with his arms crossed, a sly smirk on his face. "I'd say you fancy that Erin lass."

And then, all the blood rose to his face. He said nothing in turn, only bowed his head to avoid their teasing stares. What the hell are they going on now? And on the beginning of the semester? And they just met her! Really!

All of a sudden, with Erin’s sudden appearance, all worries of what house he’ll be seemed to have vanished.

But when they were told to change into their robes, dropped off the train and head towards the boats, with Hogwarts only miles away, he suddenly felt uneasy again. He swallowed the lump on his throat while half-listening to Hagrid.

What if he gets sorted to Gryffindor? It’s good right? After all, he’s come from a long line of Gryffindors.

But, what if he gets sorted to Slytherin? Not that he’s being prejudiced – after all, Slytherin was a strong house despite its cunningness - but somehow, he felt very scared and uneasy.

He tried to remember what his dad said, the good things, not the bad.

And before he knew it, he was on a boat riding with a few other freshmen. He lost track of Rose, who was probably on the other boat. Lots and lots of new faces, some of them may be his classmates; he’s just not sure under which house.

Now he felt sick because of all the worrying.

“Calm down Astley!” a familiar voice says brightly to his left, “Aren’t you excited to know what house you’ll be sorted to? Oh, I think I already know where I’ll be. At least I hope I know where I’ll be. And I promise you, whatever house you’ll be in, I’ll always be here for you.” Standing there was the girl on the train, Erin Alisdair. She was talking to a tall girl with chestnut brown hair, pale ivory skin, and had a pair of deep green eyes. She looked awfully deathly.

As if sensing his stare, Erin turned to him, a smile quickly spreading across her face. “Hey, you’re that guy on the train! Astley, Astley!” she called towards her friend, the boat wobbling a little, turning to him. “This guy’s where Ginger suddenly ran off to.”

“Really?” the girl said, slightly sounding a bit mature for her age.

“Yep! He was on the poor guy’s head, apparently, making himself cozy, that fat cat of yours.”

“Ginger?” he asked, tilting his head in confusion.

“My cat.” Her friend, now identified to be Astley, replied with a faint grin. “I’m Astley Khan.” She introduces herself, stretching her hand to him. He shakes it firmly.

“A-Albus Severus Potter.” He was rather thankful for not attracting unwanted attention for his last name; he knew his father was fairly popular. Fairly was an underestimate, he was really popular. Maybe he had said it quietly, or maybe the students didn’t care. But either way, he was thankful not have garnered attention on his first day.

Both Astley and Erin, however, did manage to wow at the sound of his last name. But they were very polite in asking questions about his father, but nothing too personal.

Turning to Erin, he asked a rather stupid question. “Uh, I know this may sound rude but, what was your name again?” He didn’t know why he wanted to ask, even when he’s already known her name. Somehow, he just wanted to hear her say her name once again.

Instead of having her offended, she acted like nothing happened. So, she stretched out her hand, smiling brightly, “Erin. Erin Scott Alisdair.” And then he takes her hand in his, he notes how small and soft her hand is.

There was a brief silence before Erin suddenly piped up at the sight behind him; they were close enough to see the Hogwarts castle. Almost everyone on boat gasped as they marveled the towering castle walls.

Erin sighed dreamily, “Just like my dad said, it’s beautiful up close.”

“It sure is.” Albus nodded, looking up.

Still, the feeling roiled deep in his belly.

When they were led to the main doors and were briefly informed of the houses, it was then did Albus start to get all panicky. He had drowned himself in his thoughts, half-listening to what the headmistress was saying.

Rose stood beside him, attentively listening to the headmistress. From the corner of his eye, he noticed that Astley was, too. Getting panicky, like him. Noticing this, Erin quietly took her took her hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. Astley had somehow managed to calm down a little, smiling gratefully at Erin. He felt a bit jealous for Astley. But Erin noticed that he too was at the same state of her best friend, from her spot, she gave him a thumbs-up along with her toothy grin. Her sign of reassurance, oddly enough, he awkwardly worked a small feat of a smile.

That night, names were called, sorted to their respective houses. The more names were called, and the smaller they were, the more he felt his anxiety run through his veins.

Scorpius Malfoy was sorted to Slytherin, which was something everyone expected.

Rose Weasley was sorted to Gryffindor, another thing, everyone expected.

Astley Khan was sorted to Slytherin. Albus was rather surprised; she almost looked like she could be in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. At first, she had this pained reaction, but looked expectantly nonchalant nonetheless afterwards.

And when his name came up, he nervously made his way. But someone had grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before gently pushing him up. He nearly stumbled in step. When he turned, he found Erin giving him two thumbs-up along with her usual smiles of assurance. He managed to relax.

He sat on the stool, calming his breathing as the hat was put on his head.

Suddenly, he wasn’t listening to what the Sorting Hat was saying but recalled for the umpteenth time his father’s parting words.

_“Albus Severus, you were named from two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew.”_

_“But just say-“_

_“-then Slytherin house will have gained an excellent student, won’t it? It doesn’t matter to us.”_

It doesn’t matter to us.

It won’t matter at all.

Gryffindor or Slytherin.

It won’t have to matter at all.

He closed his eyes, leaving the rest.

Let it be.

“…Gryffindor!”

His eyes flew wide open. He couldn’t believe it. He was in Gryffindor!

Smiling, he went over to the Gryffindor table, being piled over by his brother and cousins, serving as his warm welcome. Geez, talk about embarrassing.

From his table, he was able to see Astley, quietly conversing with another Slytherin – Scorpius Malfoy. He caught her gaze and offered a smile. She smiled back.

Suddenly, his cousin Fred nudged him.

“What?”

His ginger-haired cousin pointed towards the student now walking – well, skipping, more likely – up, “Erin Alisdair.”

His ears perked up, but he did not want to look up. His cousins were eyeing him like a hawk, silently teasing him in his seat. Discreetly, he watched her from his seat, watched as the Sorting Hat spat words and words that made Erin laugh. She even had the gall to make fun of the Sorting Hat! This caused everyone in the Great Hall, teachers included, to laugh.

Eventually, after having pestered on and on, she was sorted to Ravenclaw.

James whistled lowly, “Whew, a Ravenclaw. Nice catch, little bro!” he puts a hand on Albus’ head and starts screwing it, much to his annoyance.

He watched her walk over to the Ravenclaw table where she was practically bombarded by everyone. She was all smiles as they welcomed her, the joy emanating he features.

Erin sat in between two boys, three actually, one had the same shade of ebony like her and the Scamander twins, both with strawberry blond hair. She was laughing at something the twins said, he just watched.

Soon after, came the headmistress’ welcoming speech, offering a toast to the freshmen. Everyone followed, raising their goblets.

Incidentally, he took a peek at Ravenclaw’s table, meeting Erin’s gaze. He stopped then and there, caught in her gaze. Despite the distance, he felt like she was close, like when they were in the train. She smiled that smile of hers, causing his heart (he swore he felt it) to skip a beat.

And thus, began his 7-year adventure at Hogwarts.


	2. First Year: Snow White

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[First Year: Snow White]_ **

It was the morning after the Welcoming Feast when Albus realized that he was running late.

He’s winded out when he reached his first class – Potions. Pushing the dungeon doors open, a bit of too forcefully, disrupting Professor Slughorn’s discussion and announcing his arrival. Almost everyone turned to the doors at the sight of him. He gulps nervously at the attention.

“Ah, Mister Potter, late, are we?”

“A-Ah, um…” he stutters nervously, swallowing the lump down his throat. _Great first impression on the first day!_

“Come, come,” the professor calls, wiggling two fingers as a sign for him to step in further to the classroom. Without another word, he complies, dropping his head and shoulders in shame. Looks like he must double time in this class if he wants to get a good grade and impression.

Five long strides into the room, he hears the door slam open revealing a girl nearly tripping on her feet as she balances her duffel bag that had slipped on the bend of her arm and a half-eaten bread in her hand. Her ebony hair cascading over her face seemed awfully familiar, and he was proven right when she looked up. Purple eyes were bright despite her frazzled state – Erin Alisdair.

“Hm, Miss Alisdair, is it?” Professor Slughorn asks, eyes glued curiously to the girl standing outside his classroom.

Taking a bite of her bread – which happens to be a cheese bagel - she nods and walks further into the room. Albus notices the crumbs scattered along her cheeks and her less than worrisome expression on her face.

Erin stops walking when she stands beside Albus, munching still on her bread.

The Potions professor raises an amused brow at her nonchalance and then looks from her to Albus. He heaves a heavy sigh, keeping his steady gaze at both.

“Tardy are we this morning?” his voice as stern and playful as his gaze.

“Sorry professor, I overslept,” Albus confessed shyly. Erin beside him watches while continually munching her bread.

He hums, nodding his head slowly. “Quite,” turning to the raven-haired girl, he asks.” And what about you, my dear girl?”

Swallowing her bread, she lowers her bread, wipes her cheeks with her robes, and says. “Same reason as Albus over here, just, I took my time searching for breakfast on the way here.”

Albus swore he heard someone snort, and from the corner of his eye, he found the brunette – Astley Khan, was it? – clamping a hand on her mouth. A few snickering was heard from the rest of the students afterward, others muttered under their breath, disbelieving Erin’s audacity.

He looked at Erin, wondering how she’d react to this, only to find her usual smile on, crumbs still scattered along her cheeks.

…

“How was your first day?” James asked over dinner, forking some potatoes into his mouth, much to his disgust.

“Before I answer, please chew your food properly and don’t talk with your mouth full.” He tells his older brother.

Rolling his eyes playfully, the older teen did as request, Roxanne shaking her head in disgust.

Sighing, rather heavily, he tosses at his dinner. “Eventful.” Suddenly, he missed his mother’s cooking, missing the warmth of his home. Expectations and hopes suddenly felt really heavy on his shoulders and the back of his tongue bitter. Frustrated, he takes what little amount of food in his mouth, washing it down with some juice.

Sensing this, his brother quickly tunes in. “Feeling homesick already, Al?”

“Hmm. Maybe.”

“He got detention.” Rose says, tone worried. “On his first day.”

“That’s what’s getting you down?”

“James Sirius Potter.” Rose warns, at her cousin’s defense.

Raising his arms in surrender, the older Potter tried a different approach. “There’s nothing to worry about, it’s only detention.”

“Says the master of all hijinks and mayhem,” Roxanne mutters under her breath, albeit not being subtle at it.

“Eh, not my fault that some classes are too stuffy- _the point is_!” exasperated, voice raising slightly in a pitch to defend himself, the Weasley cousins laugh before James continued on. “it’s only detention, it’s not the end of the world.”

Exhaling through his nose, Albus worries his lower lip. “Not a good way to start your first year, and it’s my first class. Must be a bad omen.”

“Ah, yes. There’s _that_.” Came James’ sarcastic quip, eye rolling as an added flair. Albus gave his brother a blank stare, clearly unamused. “Come on now, first impressions don’t always last! Sure, they’ll come and bite you every now and then, but at the end of the day everyone will forget it.”

“Sure, you say that now…” Rose said, rather cryptically.

Finishing the last of his dinner, Albus set his meal aside eyes looking around them – the foreign dinner hall they were in, filled with differing personalities from all walks of life, a far contrast from the warmth of home.

“If it makes you feel any better, Fred set his cauldron on fire on the first day.”

Beside him, the said redhead sputters into his drink, slamming his cup on to the table, turning to his cousin angrily. “YOU PROMISED NEVER TO SPEAK OF THAT!”

Their table burst into laughter, Albus feeling slightly better as he laughed his heart out. Glancing his brother’s way, a grateful smile found itself wounding on his lips. Looking up, James returned the gesture – his smile more mischief but more comforting and softer.

…

Later day, both Albus and Erin were sent to detention.

It was a blow to Albus’ part but had almost seemed like nothing to Erin. But strange enough, even after helping Professor Slughorn check essays, detention was a lot more fun than he had expected, especially with Erin, most especially and awkwardly with Erin around.

“Have a good night, professor!” she called, earning a wave from the old man, slowly waving the door close behind them.

“Why do you seem so lax?” he asked her confusingly.

They were walking down the corridors in the wee hours of the night, and being a chivalrous Gryffindor that he was, he insisted that he walked Erin to their common room. It would take a while, being that the Ravenclaw common room was located in one of the highest towers of the castle. But he didn’t mind.

“How can I not?” was her reply, her hands behind her back.

Erin Scott Alisdair was a strange lass. All day, while he still sulked at the idea of getting a detention on his first day, all thoughts dissipated at the sight of the black-haired girl – having shared every class with her.

Every class was rather amusing to her, regardless of its specialty or difficulty. Considering that she’s a Ravenclaw, it might be a breeze for her. Purple eyes were bright with life every time he saw her.

“Aren’t you bothered by what people think of you?”

He remembered at Charms how she had babbled about a certain spell to her brunette friend, rather animatedly with her hands and wand swishing that her feather flew all over the place. She had to apologize to Professor Flitwick and some annoyed students.

“Why do you seem so interested, hmm?” she asked, leaning in.

Instantly, his face flushed. “I-I’m j-just curious is all!”

“Ah.” She says with a nod, humming a tune under her breath.

Opening a door out to her, he notices something odd in her hair. He hasn’t noticed it until now. There was nothing wrong with it, just that it was ebony, black like the night, likened to the finest black silk. Almost akin to charcoal in color. But out of nowhere, he notices a strange strand of hair sticking out waywardly to her left. Before he could stop himself, he reached out to her and gently pushed it down. Surprisingly, it only sprang right up.

Taken completely by surprise, Erin giggles. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to fix your hair.” was his cryptic reply.

She tilts her head, feigning hurt and doubt. “Why, is it that bad?”

Noticing her distress, Albus starts to panic. “N-no! No! On the contrary, it’s,” he stops when she stares curiously with her wide doe-like eyes, he gulps down. “i-it’s actually, uh…it’s just a lovely shade of ebony.”

“Really?” she beams, extremely confused and elated at the same time. “that’s weird, considering that I’ve been under the sun a lot.” Then she runs her fingers down the ends of her hair, inspecting the strands.

“It’s pretty.” He says as honestly as he can, dropping his hand to his side. “It’s almost as black as the night.”

She laughs. “And my skin’s what, white as snow? And my lips red as blood? You’re making me sound like Snow White!” she laughs again.

 _You kind of do actually_ , he thought, almost voicing his thoughts aloud.

She did have a fair complexion, but not _that_ white as snow. She also had pinkish thin lips. Add up her ebony black hair and pixie-appearance, and excuse her nonchalantly, peculiar, positive attitude, she would’ve been the perfect modern Snow White.

Having reached the spiral staircase, Erin insisted that she could go on her own, but Albus persisted, saying he would rather see her off to their door. And also, he was quite curious about how the Ravenclaw’s differed from the Gryffindor’s. Learning this, made Erin laugh, but nonetheless, allowed Albus to escort her all the way.

Half-way up, Erin jokingly warned Albus that he might end up dizzy with such winding staircases. He laughed it off.

When they arrived, Albus was quite confused and intrigued with the Ravenclaw’ systems – well, considering they were full of wise, smart, and logical people – when the portrait asked a rather complicated riddle.

Her answer came out flawlessly, which then caused the portrait to open.

Twirling on her heels, Erin faced Albus with a grin and said, “Again, I’m sorry for the trouble of having to walk me all the way here.”

“No, no, it’s a pleasure really. I mean, it’s the least that I can do.”

Tilting her head to the side, she asked, “For what?”

Albus opened his mouth to say something, only to have the thought immediately dying down on him. He was slightly distracted by the way she looked at him. She almost looked so cute like that, so very, very, _terribly,_ cute.

Coming to his senses, he managed with “F-For…being your friend?” He found himself saying, which honestly, sounded off as a question rather than a sound statement. “I mean, we are friends, right?”

But Erin took it to heart, her eyes sparkling and her smile widening. But she didn’t say more. She merely nods.

“You have a good night now, Albus Severus.”

He was about to tell her that just ‘Al’ would do, but the door to the Ravenclaw common room had already been closed. He had stared at the portrait door, the portrait staring back at him, to where she had just entered, and relived the day he spent with her. It was enough to bring a smile on his face.

Just as he turned to leave, he was halted by an invincible force that screwed his hair playfully. A few snickers following after. He didn’t have to think twice as to know who it was.

“James, Fred, knock it off!”

Leave it to his meddlesome family to ruin the mood.

As if on cue, the pair revealed themselves. The pair had this knowing look on their faces; one he knew was full of mischief and whatnot. Before they could ask, he beat them to it, “What are you doing here?”

“Uh, obviously, stalking on you?” Fred said as if it was the most trivial thing to say.

“What?”

“Kidding!” James laughed. “We were actually following you- “

“Same thing,” Albus said in irritation.

The two snickered. Seriously, these two were the perfect tag team for trouble and mischief.

“We were following you because we were curious why you didn’t appear in the common room.” His brother finished his previously cut statement, sugar-coating his brotherly concern.

“Uh-huh.” His arms were crossed.

“Well? What’re you waiting for? C’mon now! We wouldn’t want to be caught by old Filch now, do we?”

Rolling his eyes, Albus joined his brother and cousin in the cloak and silently walked all the way back to their common room without getting caught.

Just when Albus got to the first-year dormitory, he was stopped by his older brother who called on him.

“Hey, Al?”

“Yeah?” he asked tiredly, he’s had a rather long and interesting day.

James shot his brother a look. “Just so you know, if ever you want some advice, I’m here.”

This caused Albus to look at his brother confusingly, raising a single brow at him. “What are you talking about?”

James cracked into a grin and shrugged, “Oh nothing. Have a goodnight Al.”

It didn’t take five seconds for the younger Potter to realize what his brother was talking about, so he yelled. “JAMES!”

But all he heard was a burst of sounding laughter as his reply.

Later that night, when Albus tucked himself to sleep, he pondered deeply on what James had told him, only to earn him a very red face. Really, he must hand it to his brother for thinking that way. Would he really? It was simply an attraction, right? Quick infatuation? Nothing more?

Right?

 _Right_ , he assured more to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not so proud with this chapter but let's just consider the fact that canonically (at least according to some fics I've read), Albus is really uptight and by the books boy. Also, I had written this BEFORE I knew of 'The Cursed Son'. Might edit this.


	3. First Year: Little Talks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[First Year: Little Talks]_ **

**_6 months later…_ **

Making his way to the Owlery to deliver his letter, Albus found himself reminiscing on the last few months that passed. When he first came to the castle, he was stiff, nervous and unsure of himself. But now, even though he’s just a first year, he’s become pretty prepared and confident with himself. His studies were doing well, making him one of the brightest first years (second to Astley Khan) and earning him a few praises from Horace Slughorn (much to his relief), whom he once had a disastrous first impression with.

Albus was able to polish himself, cleaning his first impression. He also made a good lot of friends; a few were because of his family’s influence, creating a name for him as one of the infamous sons of Harry Potter. Even Hagrid! Time to time, he, and his brother (he, alone, sometimes), would drop by his hut for a visit.

Occasionally, he’s paid witness to his brother and cousin’s many mischievous antics, making him deeply concerned for the older sibling.

All in all, life in Hogwarts was pretty great. He actually was starting to understand his father’s sentiments with Hogwarts being a second home. He smiles at the thought, knowing fully well that it was true.

Gently pushing the door to the owlery, he was met with the sounds of soft cooing and flapping wings. Rows and rows of owls lingered every corner of the round tower.

He was surprised to find a familiar girl with ebony black hair sitting in the middle of the circular room with an owl on her shoulder, pecking lightly over her dark locks. A soft expression emanated her features, eyes twisting thick in emotion as she read the parchment in hand.

It was Erin Alisdair.

Sitting with her legs crossed, as she wore another of those god-awful dress and jumper combo. Looking away from the parchment, she directed her attention to the feathered creature on her shoulder, transfixed her gaze to her owl, the softest expression emanating her features. The spotted owl rubbed itself against her finger, delighted by her touch.

He couldn’t move, for a while, Albus just stood there staring at the ebony-haired girl.

As if sensing his eyes on her, the ebony-haired girl looked up, her purple eyes lighting up at the sight of him. “Albus, hello!” she says with a toothy grin.

“Erin.” At the sound of her name, the grin on her face grows. If possible, she seemed to bloom when she smiled. Suddenly, he felt quite hot. “W-What are you doing here?”

“Oh, just sending a mail to my dad and grandpa.” She said, pocketing the parchment she read earlier and reached for another in the opposite pocket.

“Oh, I see.” He nods, his owl – Hedwig II – swooping down to his shoulder. “How about your mum?”

Erin momentarily paused, voice a little quiet. “She’s gone.” Albus froze. Last time, she made mention of her mom when they met on the train, but that was it. “She died a few years ago.” _Oh._

“E-Erin, I’m sorry I-“

“No, it’s okay.” She waves off. “I know you didn’t mean to. It’s fine.”

A pregnant silence filled the two; the only sounds they could hear was the wind blowing in and the owls moving about.

Moments later, she looks up to him, a smile on her face. She pats the cobbled ground, to the spot next to her; gesturing him to sit beside her. And he does, carefully sitting beside her while watching her from the corner of his eye.

“So, who’re _you_ sending your letters to?” she queried curiously.

Scuffling on spot, he answered her in discomfort, “Uh, my mum.”

Erin didn’t so much as to flinch, only smiled. “Oh?”

He nods, “Yeah.”

“That’s good. How’s your mum?”

“Oh, she’s doing fine”

“What’s her work?”

“She, uh, works for a paper, under sports.”

Erin giggled. “That’s interesting.”

After fixing her letter, she takes her owl in hand, Albus follows, then joining Erin walk towards the big window. And together, they set their owls out to fly.

They watched as their birds freely flew off, getting smaller and smaller by the distance. The awkward silence between them grew.

Without thinking, Albus spoke, “W-Would you like to- “he swallowed, feeling the heat rise to his face.

Erin turns to him, translucent eyes glimmering in question.

Inwardly, he cursed. Why was talking to girls so awkward?

Clearing his throat, he tries again, “Would you like me to escort you…?”

She blinked once, “Escort me where?”

“U-Uh, wherever you want to go to?”

She mulled at that, cocking her head to the side in a cutesy manner.

The silence filtered them for a moment, making Albus feel extremely nervous at his little offer. He felt his palms starting to sweat, turning chummy.

“You’re adorable Albus Severus Potter, you know that?” Erin finally replied, immediately lifting the mood between the two.

Albus heaved the heaviest sigh of relief, discreetly.

Erin Alisdair sure was something.

And because he was to escort her, he was rather surprised to find that she had chosen to be escorted to the Great Lake. Thankfully, not far, they were freshmen and were prohibited to go beyond the Whomping Willow.

When they were there, almost immediately, Erin had taken off her socks and shoes and ran towards the lake, shrieking merrily at the coldness of the water. Albus watched interestedly.

Pushing her sleeves to her elbows, she bent over to pick a few pebbles before tossing them, watching them skip once, twice, thrice. It brought a smile to her face. She skipped another, her smile growing as it skipped further.

“Albus, come on!” she called, inviting him. “The water’s fine!”

Albus took a few steps closer but didn’t make motion to join her in the water. He shook his head lightly, indicating his rejection of her offer. However, Erin was persistent.

“Albus Severus!”

He chuckled.

“I actually prefer watching from here.”

“Come on, please?”

Reluctantly, Albus bent down to his shoes, taking off his socks and shoes, rolled his pants before walking towards Erin. She smiled widely at him.

When he was a foot away from her, she started splashing at him. He screeched, complaining about his clothes. Erin laughed, and then showed her wand. Oh _duh_ , they could use magic!

Mimicking her actions, he bent down to pick a few pebbles then joined her skipping rocks. Though, he wasn’t as good as Erin.

“You’re good at this,” he commented.

She grinned. “Practice.” She said easily, attempting to throw another, only for it to fall off her hands. She merely giggled at that and bent to pick a few more rocks. “My grandpa taught me when I was younger.”

“My dad taught me.” He says.

“Ah, the famous Harry Potter.”

At the sound of his father’s name, Albus momentarily winced. Erin found this cute and poked him in the cheek.

“You’re adorable Albus Severus,” and then she took a step back, the smile never leaving her face. “just thought I’d let you know that. Again.”

Automatically, he felt an unlikely heat spreading across his cheeks.

Clearing his throat, Albus started on with skipping rocks once again. Though his ears still had a tinge of pink.

“It must be an honor, having a dad like him.”

Albus let out a small laugh. “Honor? I don’t think the word fits it. I think…well,” he drops the rocks in hand, splashing down the water. Erin turned to him. “I don’t know the right words but, I think just being our dad…that’s enough.” Without even knowing, he smiled softly.

He stares down at his toes, feeling the cold rocks under his feet. “Before we left Diagon Alley, I was worried where I’d be sorted to. On the way there, my older brother, James, kept saying that I might be sorted in Slytherin. I became antsy and scared at the thought. Not that I didn’t consider Slytherin, or anything.” he said defensively. “Thankfully, dad talked me through it.” He suddenly misses his dad.

Sploshes of water broke him off his thoughts, when he looked up, he found Erin walking towards him, offering a kind smile.

“I understand Albus. He must be quite the father.”

“He is…”

Patting him on the shoulder, she says genuinely, “Thank you for telling me that.”

For the next few hours, they spent the rest of their time together skipping rocks, occasionally, striking a conversation every now and then. Despite being so awkward around girls (Albus’ words), Albus quite found himself enjoying her presence. After skipping rocks, he escorted her back to the castle, in time for dinner to be served.

…

It was a Thursday, and Albus was walking down the hall, heading towards the library. There was an essay to write about in Transfiguration, a subject Albus had difficulty with. It was an interesting subject really, learning how to transform things into such, but he just didn’t seem to get the gist of it. His good grades were anything but acceptable (at least to him). So, when the library door was in sight, he was determined to lift his grades and master the subject at all costs.

Upon entering, there was a fair number of students seated every table and corner. It looks like it’ll take a while for him to find a table for himself. Dismissing this, he discreetly made his way to the Transfiguration section, the towering presence of bookshelves automatically comforting him.

Having found the book he was looking for, the raven-head then settled to find a table, only to find himself face-to-face with one Erin Alisdair. She was, per usual, grinning ear to ear, her purple hues alit.

“Hiya Albus!” she chirped, almost too loud.

“Shh!” he shushed her, covering her mouth with his hand.

Albus peeked over her shoulder, finding a few heads turning, searching for the source of nuisance, before turning back to Erin. She giggled against his hand, causing Albus to flush, immediately removing his hand from her mouth.

“Don’t you ever do that again, Erin.” He berated.

“Sorry, sorry,” she said, a little softer this time. Her tone sounded off being the least worried that Madame Pince would give her an earful for disrupting the peaceful sanctuary of the library. “it’s just that, I saw you, and I thought to meself, ‘hey, it’s Albus, I know! Why don’t I go say ‘hi’ to Albus?’ being that we are friends and all. Plus, because Grandpa taught me to never be a snob to your friends, and that I inherited my daddy’s friendly genes. Also, because I just wanted to say ‘hi.’”

Albus blinked, unsure what to say at her lengthy honesty, which frankly, seemed adorable of her.

“I…uh, I see,” he said instead.

Erin beamed, exposing her teeth.

“Are you with friends?”

“Um, no,” he said, scratching his hair awkwardly. “I came by myself. I was supposed to be with my cousin, Rose, but she opted to study at the common room.”

“Splendid then!”

“Shh!” Albus shushed her again, and this time, it was her turn to cover her mouth, stifling a giggle.

“Sorry again,” she whispered, tucking a strand of ear behind her hair. “Anyways, as I was about to say, I’m with my friends, and we sit at the comfiest, coziest side of the library. We’ve got _plenty_ of room.” Her purple eyes were bright as if waiting – or expecting, for him to say yes.

Griping the book and his satchel a little tighter, Albus gulped down.

“Okay then- “

“Yay!” she didn’t wait for him to finish, having (strangely) expecting him to accept her offer. Without another word, she takes him by the hand and nearly drags him all the way to their table.

Albus stared at their hands, a pink flush spreading across his cheeks.

“Hey everyone, I’m back~!”

True to her word, their table was at the farthest corner of the library, and true to her word again, well almost, it seemed comfortable and cozy. What made it seem cozy was the fact that it had two windows adjacent to each other; giving a wonderful view of the Great Lake. Also, there seemed to be chocolate lingering around, judging by the smell of it.

His thoughts flew back to now when he recognized the people seated – first, there was Astley Khan, Erin’s best friend. He nearly sighed in relief, having found a familiar face. Astley looked up from her textbook, her brows crossed, “Erin, what took you so long?”

“Ehe,” Erin giggled. “I found Albus!” her arm extended towards him.

At the mention of his name, Astley turned to him, acknowledging his presence by smiling politely. “Albus, we meet again.”

“Khan-”

“Please, just call me Astley.”

Nodding, he tries again. “Astley, it is then.”

“Yay! You two are getting along!” Erin says happily throwing her hands in the air; he noticed that she held a book about dragons in hand.

Astley just smiled.

“Oi, if it isn’t Sniverus Albert!” a voice called out.

“I think, it’s Albus Severus,” another voice said, correcting the other.

Then there were the Scamander twins, Lorcan and Lysander, both had strawberry blond hair, beige skin tone and dark brown eyes. They were identical twins, and he wasn’t almost sure which one was which. One of them, was munching on a chocolate frog (the origin of the chocolate scent), while the other, was making a house made out of books. Like Erin, they were in Ravenclaw.

“It’s Albus Severus,” he corrected Lorcan, or Lysander.

“Ha! Told ya!” said Lysander, or Lorcan. Geez, these two were too alike.

“Gah, who’s keeping track?” asked Lorcan, or Lysander, gulping down on his chocolate frog.

“Err,” Erin tilted her head, thinking.

“Scorpius,” Astley supplied, having returned to her book.

Then Lorcan, or Lysander, turned to the pale blond lad, who peeked up at the sound of his name.

“Scorpius, who’s winning?!”

“What’s the score so far!?”

“Five to four, in favour of Lorcan.” Scorpius said coolly.

“Ah, bollocks!” cried Lysander, sagging in defeat.

Oh, and there was Scorpius Malfoy. Like Astley, he was a Slytherin, which was natural, being that his family came from a long line of Slytherins. He had fashioned the Malfoy genes – pale skin, pale blond hair, and a pair of grey eyes.

Albus regarded him with caution, something called on by his instinct. Scorpius looked up, as if sensing his gaze. They stared. The air between them seemed to thicken, but everyone didn’t seem to notice. Astley flipped on the book she was reading. The twins exchanged tasks with each other.

“Potter,” Scorpius regarded coolly.

“Malfoy,” Albus regarded in turn.

They continued to regard each other in silence.

“Are you two gonna kiss now?” Erin asked innocently, who was standing a few feet from them.

Someone snickered. Astley buried her face deep into her book, but the slight crinkle in her eyes was proof that she was laughing.

Albus turned to Erin, regarding the two, unaware of the tension between them.

“Erin, why would you think that?” Astley cried, stifling in her laughter.

“Yeah! You know Scorpius isn’t like that!” says Lysander.

“Especially when-“just as Lorcan was about to finish, a book flew straight into his face, immediately shutting him up. A crack was heard.

Erin shrieked, but cracked up, so did everybody else.

Lorcan complained to Scorpius, who in turn, shrugged it off with a smirk playing his lips, earning a fit of laughter from Lysander and Erin. Astley, kept to herself, smiling as she read her books.

“Don’t mind them, they’re idiots.” Astley said with a smile.

“Hey, we heard that!” the twins cried in unison.

Albus found himself awed by everything from the reception of how he was welcomed, to how everyone he just met was unlike how he thought they were.

Later, as he joined their table, he found that not everything was quite as he seemed. And he was glad to be proven wrong. For who thought a Malfoy and Potter could be friends?

Well, Hogwarts was starting to get interesting.

…

“So Al,” James’ voice came out of nowhere, making Al jump slightly, “where were you all afternoon?”

Oh, Godric, he loved his brother, but he was rather nosy. Heck, everyone in their family were!

Albus poked at his mashed potatoes with his fork, before scooping it into his mouth, following in its wake were string beans, ham, chicken, and corn, shoving everything in his mouth in what seemed to be a foolproof way to avoid telling his older sibling anything.

“I thought you were supposed to be studying with Rose at the library?”

Albus ignored his brother, focusing on chewing his food.

James raised a brow at his brother, exchanging glances with his cousin, Fred. Fred, in turn, cracked into a smirk before leaning in, resting his chin against his palm.

“Albus?”

Swallowing his food, Albus reached for his goblet, still ignoring both his meddlesome brother and his cousin.

“A little bird told me you and that Erin Alisdair went out for a date.”

Albus choked on his drink, causing him to cough.

Rose, who sat beside him, quickly came to her cousin’s aid, patting him in the back.

While the younger cousins were busy, Fred and James exchanged high fives.

Godric, his brother and cousin would be the death of him.


	4. Second Year: Loony Little Erin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Second Year: Loony Little Erin]_ **

“Hiya Albus!” a familiar chirpy voice called.

Looking up from the cart of sweets, Albus met Erin’s gaze, her purple hues bright and full of life. For some inexplicable reason, he felt his throat dry up and his cheeks warming.

Erin seemed, after a year, taller – but not as tall as him – only by a few inches. That was it.

In fact, everything else was practically the same as last year. Nothing about her seemed different. She still had that Snow White-pixie appearance – her hair was still dark like coal, her skin white like snow, her lips a pinkish red, and her eyes were as brilliant as ever.

Suddenly, he recoiled when he felt something smash his feet. He quickly stole a glance at his brother, James, almost forgetting that he was with him.

Thanking the lady selling treats first, he pocketed his chocolates. Then he and his brother stepped aside, Erin did the same, giving the lady some space, wheeling down the hallway, leaving him with her and his brother.

He turned back to Erin, who was now tilting her head to the side, confused. She has her hands behind her, her jet-black hair falling to her side. She still sported that awful oversized sweater and dress combo, her shoes looked new though.

“E-Erin…” he croaked. “Hello.”

She smiled, standing a bit straighter.

Oh, those eyes, they were impossibly brilliant.

“How do you do, Erin?” said James. She turned to him, her smile in place.

“Yes, hi! I’m doing _just_ great!” she said, extending her hands to her side for emphasis, her eyes sparkling. “How about you?”

At this, James stole a glance at his brother, smirking playfully. Albus frowned, he rather didn’t like that smirk. “Splendid.”

She bobbed her head up and down, her dark hair bouncing along with her.

“H-How was your break?” Albus finally asked, not wanting to be left out.

“Oh, it was fantastic!” Erin squealed happily. “We went to Romania, like we always do, and helped my grandpa and dad with work!”

“Romania?” James repeated, raising a brow. “What’s in Romania?”

“Dragons!” she said easily.

The brothers looked at her in shock. Albus’ blinked thrice. “D-Dragons?”

“Dragons!” she repeated, clawing her hands in the air, with that same smile on her face.

“Why?”

“Both my grandpa and dad are magizoologists. And we’re part-Romanian, remember?”

Ah, Albus remembered that. Though, her accent was light, gibberish-like, but polite and child-like (like his aunt, Luna Lovegod), Romanian. He simply nodded at that.

“That makes sense.”

“One of our dragons laid an egg, and some from last summer hatched!” she says with glee. The brothers winced lightly at the thought. “Oh, they were so cute! They nearly burned my brother, Scott, though.”

 _Scott? So, that’s where she got her second name_ , Albus thought.

“Baby dragons?” James said in disbelief.

“Yeah!” Erin affirmed, eyes still alit. “Oh, and the best part was? I got to ride one of them dragons!”

“O-Oh, that sounds…uhm…” Albus glanced at his brother, then to Erin. “…interesting.” To which, Erin merely laughed at.

“So, how was yours?” Erin prompted, taking a step towards the brothers, more particularly, to Albus.

“Oh, us? Uhh, well- “

Just as he was about to say another word, one of the corridor doors opened, and someone’s head popped out.

It was a lad. He looked older, possibly older than his brother. From afar, he looked like a male version of Erin.

“Erin, what’s taking so long? Get over here!” he called.

Erin winced as if having remembered something she should’ve done, and then turned back to them. “Eh, sorry about that, forgot that I was buying for the guys.”

From where they stood, probably three or four doors down, he could hear the commotion going on. How many were they in there? He could hear music and laughter filling the room. They were building a racket in there.

“Ginger!” Erin suddenly cried in surprise, bringing Albus to now. “What are you doing here?” she said with a laugh, leaning towards him. Momentarily, he panicked at the nearing proximity; he could smell her scent. And then, he felt something lifted off his head followed by a soft ‘ _meow’_. She took a step back, setting the orange feline in her arms.

“So, I have to go now. But I’ll see you around, okay?”

“O-Okay…” Albus said back. To that, her smile widened. His cheeks began to warm again.

The brothers watched as she practically skipped all the way to her compartment. She looked their way, waving one last time before entering. When the doors slid shut, James looked at his brother, with a smirk on his face. Albus frowned.

“What?”

James shrugged, a smile playing on his lips.

…

A month passed by, and second-year was dawning quite considerably.

Albus was reading Herbology and munching his breakfast. Sitting across him, were his cousins, Rose and Roxanne. Fred, his other cousin, was nowhere to be seen – he probably overslept, while his older brother, James, was at Quidditch practice.

It was a quiet breakfast, with the occasional chattering of the students, clinking of platters, and owls’ hooting and flapping wings – small noises filling the Great Hall.

However, the silence was soon broken when the Great Hall doors burst open, revealing a slightly wet Erin happily walking to her house table. She held her shoes in one hand, her bare feet slapping against the ground.

“Good _morning_ Ravenclaw~!” she greeted energetically, grabbing her plate and quickly filled it with food. Once there was a mountain load of food in it, she busied herself with wolfing it all down amidst the stares she was getting.

“Erin, where have you been?” one of the Scamander twins, Lorcan, asked.

“Swimming.” Came her reply.

“Swimming?” Lysander repeated.

“Swimming.” She affirmed, but it came out sounding more like ‘schimming’ with all the food in her mouth.

“Where?” someone had asked.

“By the Great Lake,”

“Is that even allowed?” someone asked.

Swallowing, Erin played with her lips, pondering. “Well, nobody said it was, nor did anybody say it wasn’t. So, I’m assuming yeah.”

“W-What about the merpeople?” someone asked nervously, for the Great Lake was littered with merpeople after all. Rumors were, they weren’t the friendliest creatures.

“We get along just fine!” she said with a messy smile, crumbs on her cheeks.

A familiar brunette approached her, hands gripping her bag strap.

“Really, Erin…” Astley Khan reproached, shaking her head at her. With a whish of her wand, Erin’s hair had dried but was atrociously messy. Sighing, the brunette dug into her bag, taking out a brush and began brushing her friend’s dark locks.

He didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor tables weren’t that far from each other, so it was easy to hear their conversation.

“I rather like Erin,” Roxanne said out of the blue.

“Why?” Albus found himself asking, marking his hand on a paragraph he was reading.

Roxanne stared at her cousin, confused. But then, broke into a soft laugh. “What’s not to like about her? She’s such a burst of sunshine. And she’s like the Luna Lovegod of your generation. Lucky you.”

“…that’s why when I grow up, I’ll be speaking for them Magical Creatures!” came Erin’s voice, proudly declaiming her words. “Or one day, I’ll be taking Hagrid’s place as the professor for Magical Creatures!” he hears her say.

Smiling at her words, Albus agreed with his cousin’s statement about her. “Yeah.”

Finished with her breakfast, the same time Astley finishes her hair, she looks up, meeting Albus’ gaze and waves. “Hey Albus!”

From his book, he lifts his hand and waves back.

Climbing off the bench, she and Astley walk towards their table and sits beside him.

“Hello!” she greeted Roxanne and Rose, who both greeted back.

“Erin is there something you need?” he wondered, resting his palms atop his textbook.

“ _Actually_ , I was wondering if we could be partners for Herbology...” her voice came soft, pleading.

“Huh?” his eyes darted to Astley, who smiled apologetically. “What about Astley?”

“She has Scorpius as her partner already,” she said, in a sulking tone, pertaining especially to her best friend.

Astley, in turn, laughed at this. “I said I was sorry! Scorpius and I sort of talked it out when we met at King’s Cross. You were running late if I perfectly remember. The twins brought it up, and I agreed to have Scorpius.”

“I thought you were my best friend!” she cried.

Astley rolled her eyes at Erin, smiling, nonetheless.

“You’re rather close with Scorpius,” Albus noted, searching for the said lad.

As it turns out, Scorpius Malfoy wasn’t all that bad. He didn’t understand why his Uncle Ron held a grudge against his father, disapproving of their friendship, though; his Aunt Hermione and Dad seemed alright about the friendship between the two. He was a pureblood wizard, who came from an aristocratic family, a typical Slytherin, but didn’t have the arrogance like most of them. Scorpius was a good lot – calm, cool, and rather reserved.

“We were once set up together,” Astley said easily, nonchalantly. “but didn’t last long. Our families are good friends.”

Astley, though intimidating, was really approachable and friendly. She was, after all, the first friend he met after Erin. At times, when speaking with Astley, he felt like he was talking to the minister. Even when they were of the same age, she had this aura that of an adult. She was ridiculed by her co-Slytherins for being a half-blood, but Astley managed to ignore it, rebuking them in turn with her smart mouth, leaving them crying. She was scarily bold, direct, and smart, like a politician.

“Y-You and Scorpius Malfoy?!” Rose cried in shock.

“Yeah, but like I said, it didn’t last. Won’t that be awkward? He’s like a brother to me.” Turning to Albus, finally returning the topic, she said. “So, come on, be Erin’s partner for Herbology.”

“W-What about the twins?”

As for the Scamander twins, he managed to tolerate their mischievous nature. He _is_ related after all to a mischievous – and meddlesome lot. Still, he can’t tell who was who. Lorcan and Lysander were so alike in many ways – they both love to eat, they love to meddle, they’re both easily distracted, and they both like Quidditch. In relation to that, they play as Keeper and Chaser for the Ravenclaw team.

“They, have each other.” Erin said, again, in a sulking tone. “It’s like everyone’s forgotten about me,” she pouted childishly. “So Albus, _please_? Can you be my Herbology partner? You’re the only one I know left who hasn’t abandoned me!” She pleaded, clasping her hands in front of her while pouting.

Albus would have said no, since he had already decided on partnering with his cousin, Rose, but didn’t want to turn Erin down. She was, after all, his very first friend at Hogwarts. It was because of her that he managed to get over his apprehension of where he’d be sorted to. It was also because of her that he met and befriended Astley, Scorpius, and the Scamander twins. He didn’t want to tell her to work on her own, seeing that she’s before him, begging him to be her partner. Two heads are better than one, right?

Still, the issue of already having a partner confounds him. He sighed, apologetically. Erin watched him expectantly. However, it wasn’t for the reasons she was expecting.

“Erin, actually- “whatever he was going to say, was cut off at the interruption of his cousin.

“He’ll be more than glad to be your partner, Erin.”

“Really?” he and Erin said in unison – his in question, hers in delight.

The redhead nodded with a smile.

“It’s alright, Al.” Rose said kindly. “Besides, Olivia Longbottom’s been pegging me to be partners.”

“That settles it then?” Roxanne delightedly settles.

“Yay! Thank you, thank you!” Erin squeals happily, hugging Rose. Caught by surprise, Rose couldn’t help but laugh and hug her back.

“She’s kind of pushy, don’t you think?” Albus whispers to the brunette beside him, watching how Erin now converses with his cousins.

“You’ll get used to it, Albus,” Astley replies in kind, reassuringly. “Trust me.”

Sighing, Albus ran a hair through his hair and slumped on his seat. A weak smile played on his lips.

This’ll be a long year.

…

That weekend, after a rather, eventful Herbology with Erin through the past week, Albus found himself smiling at the memories they made. Like that one time when she accidentally flung their plant towards the twins, the twins panicked and brought about a chain reaction to the rest of the students. Man, what a ruckus they caused! Luckily, no detention was given. It was an accident, so it was reasonable. There was also that one time she nearly dozed off when Professor Longbottom wasn’t looking. Lucky her, the moment he turned, one of the twins stomped on her feet, _hard_ , waking her in an instant.

As he was reminiscing on about the events that happened in Herbology, his thoughts were cut when he felt something abruptly collide with his head, making him drop his books in the process. Pain soon followed.

Beside him, his cousin – Rose panicked, approaching. “Al, are you alright?” They were at the middle courtyard, strolling around for second years aren’t allowed to go to Hogsmeade yet.

“Of course, I’m not,” he said, rubbing the growing lump on his head. His reply brought upon the pain he was feeling. Rose easily understood that.

Getting to his knees, he picked up his things, Rose to help him when he noticed something.

A shoe.

A worn-out looking shoe.

The same worn-out looking shoe that hit him squarely in the head. Confused, he picked it up as he stood, studying the patches and discoloration of the material.

“Hi Albus! Hi Rose!” someone cried out of nowhere, sounding almost like–

“Erin?” he turned, searching for the said girl.

But she was nowhere to be seen. His brows furrowed, was he hearing things?

Then, he felt a nudge from his cousin. When he turned to her, she was looking up, indicating he does the same. And when he did, he was surprised to find Erin Alisdair sitting on the tree branches, waving at them with a toothy grin.

“Erin, how’d you get up there?” asked Rose.

“I climbed!”

“She’s full of surprises,” Albus muttered under his breath, holding the shoe in his hand, smoothing his fingers through the material.

_The shoe._

“Uh, Albus?”

“Yes, Erin?”

“Can I have my shoe back?”

“Oh, uh...sure.”

Taking his wand from his pocket, he levitated it up to her.

When it reached her level, she attempted to reach it. She must’ve leaned forward too much, because, without a moment’s pass later, she fell forward.

“Erin!” both Rose and Albus cried.

Albus ran under the tree, dropping carelessly his things to the ground and lifted his hands in an attempt to catch her.

“Oof!”

Only to have Erin fall on top of him.

“Oww…” Albus groaned.

“Albus!” Erin cried, fumbling on her knees. “I’m so sorry!”

“Are you two okay?” Rose asked.

As Albus was about to open his mouth, he felt something heavy fall on him, landing with a loud ‘thud’. He groaned. Then, he felt something land on his head.

“I will be,” he croaked, poking one eye to find Erin’s shoe directly over his eye.

Immediately, Erin got off him and took her bag from Albus’ back. Hastily taking a step back, she helped him up. When he took her hand, he noticed that her face was embarrassed, apologetic.

“I am _so_ sorry Albus!” Erin cried, fussing over him.

“Erin-“

“I didn’t mean to- I-I’m just really clumsy sometimes…”

“No, no, n-“

“Erin,” Rose tried to interrupt, only to be cut off again.

“I wasn’t paying attention like I always do – being that I have the attention span of a squirrel, like my brother used to say- “she was waving her hands in the air.

“ _Erin_ ,” Albus called a bit firmly this time. And this time, successfully caught her attention. “it’s alright, I’ll be alright.”

Her eyes shined, a feat of a smile forming on her face. “Really?”

Stretching out his back, with an occasional pop here and there, Albus stood a bit straighter and smiled. “Yeah, I will be.”

A grateful smile formed on her face. Her smile was infectious because he and his cousin found themselves smiling too.

“I really am sorry, Albus,” she said, for what seemed to be the umpteenth time, playing with the patches on her rucksack.

“Erin,” Rose pats her shoulder, making Erin jump. “it’s fine. It was an accident.”

After Rose said this, she went to pick Albus’ things, leaving the two to talk. The two awkwardly stood in front of each other, awkward caused by the ruckus earlier.

“How’s your back?” Erin asked worriedly, taking a step towards him.

“A bit sore,” he stretched his shoulder. “but I’ll live.”

She sighed, her mouth twitching by the corners like she was fighting the urge to pout. “I really am sorr-“

“Erin,” just as he opened his mouth, Rose stood beside her cousin with his things. She also gave him Erin’s shoe, then nudged him towards her. “it’s fine, really.” He said awkwardly, holding in his hand Erin’s shoe.

“Oh, hey my shoe.” Her voice was ecstatic.

“A bit worn out; don’t you think?” Rose asked worriedly, to which, she shrugged with a tight smile.

Erin was just about to reach for her shoe when Albus raised a hand to her. “Here, let me help you with that.” With that, he got to his knees.

“A-Albus, you don’t have to-“

“Think of it as your compensation for my back,” he told her, sliding the shoe into her tiny feet.

She looked at him in disbelief, turning to Rose to ask. “Is he always like this?”

The redhead shrugged. “Sometimes,”

Finishing her shoelaces, he stood up. Noticing the proximity, he coughed awkwardly and took a step back, taking his things from Rose.

“That was a sweet gesture, thank you, Albus.” Erin smiled, gratefully.

Albus smiled back. His smile disappeared when he remembered something.

“What were you doing up there?” He found himself asking.

Erin blinked, then realization dawned on her. “Oh! I was just taking photos!” she then took something out of her bag, presenting her camera to them. It was one of those instant cameras, only, bigger and wonky looking. It was a mystery how that thing fit in her bag or how it wasn’t crushed (probably caused by a soft landing, kudos to Albus’ back). Then, she passed to them the photos she had taken. Some were candid shots of students, some were of the completely random (she took a photo of Ms. Norris, a bottle cap, but were all taken nicely), and some were amazing shots of the castle from a certain angle. “From up there,” she pointed at the branch where she previously sat. “I have a nifty view. Nothing compared to the Ravenclaw tower, but still nifty.”

“You like photography?” Rose asked astonishingly, admiring the photos.

“Like it? I love it!” as if to prove her point, she flashed a photo of the cousins. The two were caught completely by surprise. When the film was out, she blew on it, waving it in the air, until their photo came out. The photo of Albus and Rose showed them looking at her, before taken by surprise.

“I like this,” she declared. “I think I’ll keep it.”

“Do you always take pictures of everybody?” Rose asked, returning the photos to her.

Pocketing them, Erin gave it a thought then shook her head. “Not always, only when I have nothing to do. It’s a hobby.”

They nodded. Erin sure was full of surprises, like their Aunt Luna. She was every bit of quirky and witty like their Aunt Luna. He wonders if the Scamander twins saw their mother in Erin.

“Who’s the wanker?” someone asked, his voice was deep and full of authority. The three turned, finding a tall, male-version of Erin standing a few feet from them.

“Scott!” Erin cried, bouncing at the sight of him.

However, the tall male-version of Erin kept his eyes on Albus, a steely gaze, making him shiver. He nudged his head to Albus’ direction.

“ _He_ ,” she hooks her arm around his. “is Albus Severus Potter. He’s a friend.” Her last words came out cautiously as if she were taming a beast.

Then, his grey eyes set towards Rose.

“How ‘bout the redhead?”

“She,” she held out a hand to her. “is Rose Weasley. She’s also a friend. Oh, and she’s Albus’ cousin!”

The older lad nodded, looking at him from head to toe, his steely grey eyes assessing him. Albus felt conscious for some reason.

“Albus, Rose, this is my brother, Scott Travis Alisdair.” She stretched out a hand to her brother, palms open to him “He’s two years our senior.”

“Hello,” her brother greeted, waving a hand at them. Albus nodded. Rose greeted him back politely. “Potter, eh? I presume you’re related to James Potter?” His accent, he noticed, was roughly more Romanian compared to Erin’s.

“He’s my brother.” “He’s my cousin.” Rose and Albus said at once.

“Ah, figures.” Scott smiled, walking towards them. “He’s a troublemaker.”

Upon seeing the smile on his face, Albus allowed himself a sigh of relief. He and Rose laughed at his statement, unashamed of the fact.

“Just like our little Erin,” he turns to her, screwing her hair playfully. She swats his hands away, a cute pout on her face.

“Hey, that wasn’t nice Scott!”

“What? I was just telling them the truth!”

Erin pouted childishly, making Scott laugh.

Albus couldn’t help but smile at the scene, it was so familiar. It reminded him of the times his older brother, James, pestered him and Lily.

Scott Travis Alisdair. He was practically the male version of Erin, except his eyes were a pair of grey. He had a helix piercing and a strand of braid-tail behind him. A while back, he recalled hearing from Astley that he was Ravenclaw’s prefect. To be honest, though, he looked too rebellious to be a prefect.

“Cookie?”

Turning up, finding Scott offering him and Rose a fresh bag of cookies. The cookies were huge! It was a symphony of scents. Plus, there was chocolate, Albus’ weakness.

Hesitantly, he reached out and took a chocolate chip. Rose took out an oatmeal cookie.

“Thank you,” she says before munching on her treat.

“No, thank _you_ ,” he says, handing out the cookies to his sister, who took out about five cookies and shoved them in her mouth. Offering them the cookies again, he and Rose took from. A look of confusion crossed his face, what was he thanking them for?

“Thank you for keeping her company,” he finished, as if reading Albus’ mind, then took a bite of his own cookie.

“Though, I’m sorry about my sister,” Albus and Rose looked at him in confusion. Scott pockets the bag of cookies in his pouch before finishing his sentence. “Hope she hasn’t been any problem.”

“Scott!” Erin cried, elbowing him. Scott laughed, rubbing at his arm.

“No, no, not at all!”

Rose broke into a fit of giggles. “You two sure are close,”

At that, Scott smiled proudly. “Of course, we are,” he hooks his arm around her head, screwing her head playfully. “she’s a flower in the family.” He says affectionately.

Instantly, Albus recognized the tone of his voice since he and James were pretty much like that with their youngest sister. But for their case, it was different. Erin was the only girl of the house after her mother died, deeming her as the most precious for the Alisdair family, he’d like to presume.

“Well, we best be heading now,” Scott announced, lifting Erin on his shoulder, taking her rucksack in his other shoulder. “The two of us have some things to do.”

“See you around, Rose, Albus!” she waved at them.

“Yeah, see you.” Rose waved back.

As the siblings walked out of the courtyard, leaving Rose and Albus, they hadn’t noticed the impact they gave to the cousins.

“She’s one loony lass,” Rose said lightly. “almost like Aunt Luna.”

“My thoughts exactly.”

“I’m glad she’s our friend.”

Rose’s words took him by surprise, but Albus didn’t deny it. He was too.

“Shall we go? We still have to return the books to the library.”

“Yeah,” he scratched his head, looking down. When he did, he found something.

Rose hadn’t noticed him kneeling down to have a look at it.

It was a photo of Erin, taking a photo of herself at an arm’s length. Her eyes were alit; so much positive emotions crossed them. She was showing them her photos that this must’ve fallen off.

“Al?”

Startled, he took the photo and pocketed it in his bag before running up to Rose.


	5. Second Year: The Gift of a Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Second Year: The Gift of a Friend]_ **

As the Hogwarts Express train began to move, inside, the students went about into their compartments. Albus popped some chocolate frog in his mouth as he steadily walked down the corridor. From outside the window, he watched as the snow pelted the windows, Hogwarts slowly shrinking out of sight.

When the castle was completely out of sight, Albus allowed for a moment to continue watching the scenery as his breath fogged up the glass, before heading towards his destination.

He could hear chattering from each compartment, all from the excitement of coming home for the holidays. As was he, family holidays were always something, and especially since he came from a big family.

Upon reaching his compartment, Albus popped himself another chocolate frog before sliding the door open.

Almost immediately after he opened them, he heard groans and things being flipped – sounding like paper.

“Albus! You’re back!” Erin cried happily. “Sit down, sit down!” she patted the spot right next to her.

“No fair! Why do you always win at cards?” cried Lysander or Lorcan before her, he still couldn’t tell who was who.

Scorpius all but smirked, collecting his winnings. The blond regarded him with a nod; Albus returned the gesture before sitting down next to Erin.

Sitting beside her was Astley, who was reading _Witch’s Weekly_ while her cat, Ginger, nestled against her lap. Scorpius sat across them, with the twins beside them.

And when he did sit, it was then that he noticed that they – minus Astley – were playing cards.

“Gah, again!” Lorcan or Lysander demanded.

“Want to lose again?” challenged Scorpius who was shuffling the cards. “I wouldn’t mind more winnings,”

“No way am I playing with you!” cried Erin, crossing her arms against her chest.

“You cheated!” said Lorcan or Lysander.

Scorpius rolled his eyes at the twins’ remark. “Sore losers,”

Albus chuckled in amusement, popping in his mouth his last chocolate frog. His set of friends were an interesting lot. They just became friends last year, but already, they’re the closest thing he has to a family.

Regardless of what house they were in, what their blood-status was, or their beliefs, they were friends and that was all that mattered. Nothing more, nothing less. As opposed to what people would say, he wouldn’t trade his friends for anything. It was then that he found himself thinking how these four became friends.

“I know this is a bit late, but how did you become friends?” he asked, looking at them all. He had hoped that he hadn’t sounded rude asking that, he was just curious.

The four looked at each other, grins breaking into their faces.

“Scorpius’ and my family are good business partners,” Astley started, putting her magazine to the side. She regarded the said blond coolly. “and as I told you before, we were almost set for marriage once.”

“What!?” nearly everyone – but Erin, Astley, Albus, and Scorpius – shrieked in surprise.

“Yes,” Astley said with a laugh, running her hand over a shocked Ginger, as if to lull him back to sleep. “thankfully, they saw that Scorpius and I were better off friends, we practically treat each other like siblings, so they broke it off.”

“As for us,” Lorcan or Lysander started, having recovered from his shock. “we met them via Erin –“then pointed at said girl.

“– we found her funny during her act on the first day of Potions,”

“– then we decided to befriend her, seeing what a fun lass she was.”

“Awwe, you two are making me blush.” Erin laughed.

“We all became friends because of Erin,” Scorpius said simply. “she was the one who glued us together. One day, I was looking for a table in the library then came across Astley with them. The next day, I found myself with them having lunch at the courtyard, which was then followed by a few more until I realized that we were friends.” A ghost of a smile played his lips.

“I had no idea I was the glue to this,” Erin admitted. Everyone laughed at her. “I’m serious! I mean, I met Astley when I was seven when mum and dad had to go to the muggle world. Scorpius, I befriended right after Astley introduced me to him. The twins, like they said, we became instant friends after Potions. And Albus,” she smiled at him. “we met on the ride to Hogwarts, remember?”

Albus blushed at the memory. “I always thought you were a pixie right then and there,” he admitted.

To his surprise, everyone laughed, agreeing on that.

“The first time I saw Scorpius, I thought he was going to hex me!” admitted Lorcan or Lysander.

Scorpius raised a brow in amusement. “I would if you didn’t have to stare and ask why my hair’s so bloody white!”

Astley snorted, clamping a hand over her mouth. Albus did the same. Really? Of all things? Lorcan and Lysander happen to be blond themselves!

“That, or I might’ve mistaken you for a veela.” Lorcan, or Lysander, shrugged. “It could be worse. I would have mistaken Astley for a princess because of how regal she moved.”

This time, Scorpius snorted.

“No argument there,” Erin laughed.

“Here, here!” the twins cried, slamming her fists on her laps.

“So, I reckon you all met Scott?” he inquired, seeing how close they all were.

“Oh yes, we met good ‘ol Scottie.” Lorcan, or Lysander, affirmed. “He’s so cool! With his piercings and all. One day, I wanna get a piercing too.”

“Are those even allowed?” Albus wondered.

Lorcan, or Lysander, shrugged. “But hey, it doesn’t matter now, does it? I mean, Scott’s a perfect prefect. Piercings and all, he goes by the book. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d be Head boy one day.”

“I happened to mistake him for a junkie.” Scorpius said, leaning forward. A tight smile on his face meaning it to be for Erin.

“No harm done,” Erin assured. “still, it _does_ make him cool, I guess.”

“You’re his sister,” Astley pointed out. “of course, you’d say that.”

“Nuh-uh!”

From their little banter, he could see how close Astley and Erin were. How close they all were. That gave him a sense of ease.

“Some days,” Scorpius said to the two. “I wonder if you two aren’t twins.”

“What, just because we banter a lot?” she queried. “Lorcan and Lysander don’t banter.”

“Because we –“ Lorcan, or Lysander, said, slinging his arm around his twin.

“– get along!” Lorcan, or Lysander, finished, slinging his arm around his twin also.

The twins were a quite comical pair.

“Oh!” Erin cried suddenly, turning Scorpius. “Speaking of twins, I can’t wait to finally meet your siblings, Scorpius!”

Scorpius smiled softly, looking out the window. “Yeah, me too.”

“Your siblings?” Albus wondered. “I thought you were an only child.”

He gave out a small laugh. “You didn’t ask. But no matter,” he took something from his jacket, looking like a locket. “their names are Cepheus and Cyllene,” he showed him a photo of them, a smiling chocolate-haired boy and girl. “they’re four years old and are full of joy.”

“You must love them dearly,”

“Of course, I do. What kind of brother am I if I don’t?”

“Aww,” the twins cooed beside him, touched. “you should be _our_ brother!” sniffed Lysander or Lorcan.

Laughing, he shoved them off him, resulting in them falling to the ground. Everyone laughed, even the twins.

Yep, they were the best friend anyone could ask for.

…

The ride back to King’s Cross was a joyous one, especially when you have a set of friends who are game for just about anything. Albus found it humorously absurd that his friends coming from Slytherin and Ravenclaw, were this loony and fun.

For a Ravenclaw, Erin and the twins sure knew how to turn logical debates into fun games.

And surprisingly, the spirit of cunningness of Slytherins did not die. Especially when it comes to playing cards, it was hard to tell whether Scorpius – Astley never participated – was bluffing or not, something that frustrated the twins.

Upon the discovery of Erin’s camera, the group took a lot of photos together. There were good shots, then bad ones, then terrifically bad ones, and the goofy ones. She gave each to everyone as momentous, and her Christmas present to everyone.

When King’s Cross was in sight, Erin practically leaped on her seat when she saw the familiar faces outside their window. Not only her but so were the rest of them, watching out the windows expectantly for their families.

“Haha, mum…” Lorcan, or Lysander, pointed out the window.

“Daddy! Grandpa!” she squealed happily.

“It looks as though your grandpa hasn’t aged at all,” remarked the twins in unison, surprising Albus.

“You know her grandpa?”

“Of course,” said Lysander, or Lorcan.

“– he’s the infamous, Prospero Bowen!” Lorcan, or Lysander, finished.

“Bowen?”

“That’s my mum’s maiden name, he’s my mum’s dad.” She told him; her voice quiet. She was practically smashing her face against the glass when she spotted a certain someone. “Eek, it’s Cepheus, Cyllene, hello!” cried Erin as she waved at them. It was useless though since they couldn’t hear her because of the glass.

Regardless, the twins waved back, but only because they caught sight of their big brother.

Though, Albus hinted that she intentionally commented on that briefly at the mention of her mother but said no more. Beside him, Astley smiled gratefully at the gesture. _Well, she wasn’t Erin’s best friend for nothing._

As they stepped off the train, the friends split up as they headed towards their families.

The twins were with their parents, hugging each of them. He caught sight of his Aunt Luna - who was Lily’s godmother and smiled. She smiled that mystical smile of hers. Beside her was Rolf Scamander, the twins’ father, he could tell where the twins got most of their genes – olive skin, deep brown eyes, everything else, was authentic on his father’s roots. The strawberry blond hair, the eyes were all Aunt Luna. Astley once told him that last year, that a few days after she befriended the twins, she immediately jumped on the topic of their famous great-grandfather and nearly swooned at the stories about him, Newt Scamander, author of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_.

Astley was with Scorpius in a corner, talking about something.

He looked up ahead, finding that his brother and cousins were chatting with their peers. His eyes then darted towards the station, strange that their families weren’t here, they were usually very punctual.

Then, he hears a squeal, sounding a lot like Erin.

“Erin, please.” Scorpius groaned. “Contain yourself.”

A womanly giggle breaks out. “It’s okay Scorpius, calm down. Erin! How are you?”

“I’m doing great Aunt Astoria!” she replies happily. “So, these are the twins!” she quickly kneels to their level. “I finally get to meet you! Hi!”

He wasn’t able to pick the rest of the conversation when he noticed someone approach Scorpius’ father.

“Good to see you, Malfoy.” He greeted. He was a tall man, with dark brown hair and kind grey eyes. There was something in the glint of his eyes that reminded him of someone, how mischief and kindness swarm in those eyes.

“Good to see you too, Alisdair.” Scorpius’ father greeted back. And with that, confirmed his thoughts. This was Erin’s father, she looked nothing like Erin but looked a lot like Scott. “Hello Astley,” Draco Malfoy greeted the brunette, who gave him a polite nod in turn.

“Draco, Astoria,” she said politely.

Now, Draco Malfoy, right in front of him made Albus really nervous. Last year didn’t count, he was too nervous to even bother looking their way.

Considering the history of him and his father, he wasn’t entirely sure as to how he would act around him. However, he _did_ recall his father saying that things were better now than before, despite the fact that they didn’t end up as friends. To which he found weird, considering that he and his son were friends.

Out of nowhere, he heard a click and a flash. No doubt, Erin on the loose.

Up close and personal, it was easy to tell where Scorpius inherited with most of his genes.

“Where’s your mum?” Astoria Malfoy asked Astley.

“Outside,” she says with a tight smile. “you know how she is.”

“Oh, how I miss her, that devil of a woman.” she said with a sigh, Astley laughed. Turning to her husband, she lays her hand gently on his arm. “Dear, we’ll go on ahead, I have a lot to talk about with Keira,” without waiting for her husband’s response, she and Astley left hand in hand.

“I’ll be seeing you,” Astley bade to everyone.

Mr. Malfoy watched as his wife walk away, disbelief written all over his face. A smile, nonetheless, played on his lips, as he shook his head at her.

Mr. Alisdair chuckled heartily, patting Mr. Malfoy in the back. “Women,”

“God bless Celia,” said the blond man under his breath, smiling still.

From his smile alone, he could see the gladness in there, the relief, joy, love, and devotion he has for his family. It was like seeing the man truly at peace, and that made Albus’ curiosity of Scorpius’ father waver. So, he wasn’t the man Uncle Ron despised him to be, he changed. And it was a good change.

“And who is this here?” Mr. Alisdair asked, noticing Albus a good foot away from them.

Mr. Malfoy raised his head up, following his gaze. His pale grey eyes coolly assessing him, taking in the boy before him. “Potter’s boy,” he recognized with a nod.

He let out a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his neck. He was never one for attention, because that was James and not him, but right now, he felt like a wreck. This was awkward.

“He has a name you know,” said Erin, popping out of nowhere with the twins on each arm. “Albus, meet my daddy, Marco Alisdair.” The said man waved with a smile. “ _Then_ , there’s Scorpius’ dad, the infamous Draco Malfoy.”

“Infamous? Erin, you wound me.” Says the blond man at the young girl, putting a hand to his chest to feign hurt, Erin only stuck her tongue at him. Not a moment later, she was standing in front of Albus.

“Oh and meet Scorpius’ siblings!” she knelt to their level, wrapping her arms around their shoulders. “this is Cepheus and Cyllene.”

“Hello there,” he said with a smile.

“Hallo!” they greeted back energetically. The twins were fraternal – Cepheus looked like his mother, while Cyllene looked like her father. Nevertheless, they both donned brown hair, from their mother, and grey eyes, from their father.

“Ewin,” Cyllene called at her, pouting lightly. “whe’s Scor?”

“Scor!” Cepheus repeated, flailing his tiny arms.

 _Scor?_ He thought.

“Right here.” Someone called.

Turning their heads, they found their big brother standing not far from them with his arms wide open, a gentle smile on his face.

Almost immediately, the twins ran towards their brother. “’SCOR!” they cried.

Scorpius laughed at the warm reception, wrapping the two in his arms before slowly getting to his knees, giving each a kiss on the forehead. It was a touching scene. He swore he heard ‘aww’s from the crowd watching.

Not minding the attention, Scorpius attended to his siblings. “Hello there, did you miss me?”

“Yes,” they said in unison.

He chuckled, touching their cheeks affectionately. “That’s good because I miss you too.” To prove it, he lifts them both in his arms. Giggles escape their lips as Scorpius twirled them around. “Oh, you two have grown!” then, sets them down.

“They’re cute, aren’t they?” Erin asked Albus, watching the siblings interact.

He nods, smiling. “Yeah, they are,”

“Speaking of siblings, have you seen Scott?” she craned her head, looking around.

“No, I’m afraid I haven’t.” he told her in an apologetic tone. And speaking of siblings, he found James with the family, still waiting. _Where were **their** families?_

“Erin,” her dad called. Erin turned. “come on over here and introduce us to your friend here.” Albus turned to her dad, then at Erin, alarmed. “I think he’s the only one I haven’t met yet.”

“Yet?”

She shrugged all too nonchalantly, looping her arm around his. “Astley and I have been best friends for years, so she’s met daddy before. Daddy and Mr. Malfoy have been good friends for as long as I can remember, so he met Scorpius a few years back. And just last year, I introduced the twins to him. So, yeah.” After she finished explaining, she smiled quickly, already before her father. “Anyways, daddy, this is Albus Severus Potter.”

“Um, j-just Al would be fine.” He said in discomfort to her father. “Hello sir.”

“Albus Severus, eh?” Mr. Alisdair said, his lips twitching. “I rather like that combination.”

Flustered, he found himself saying. “Thank you, my dad actually came up with the names…”

Mr. Alisdair hummed, while Mr. Malfoy stared; a piercing stare that unnerved him.

“Harry Potter’s one of the best men I know,” Mr. Malfoy said to him. “you should be lucky to have a father like him.”

His eyes went round, surprised at his words. “I am. Thank you sir.”

Mr. Malfoy smiled. His smile grew when he saw his children approaching, giving his son a one-arm hug.

“Well, we best be going now.” Mr. Alisdair announced. “Scott and Erin’s grandfather wouldn’t want us to keep him waiting.”

“Wait, where are they?” Erin asked with a questioning look, head tilted to the side.

“Ah, they went on ahead, said something about a certain lass.”

Erin snorted, biting down hard on her lip, fighting the urge to smile. Albus found this rather strange. When her father turned to Mr. Malfoy, saying goodbye, Erin stepped in front of him, winking. “You’ll hear from it personally from me, one day.”

“Huh?” he queried, but she said no more.

“Write to us soon!” Lorcan, or Lysander, cried, waving at them from a distance. He and Erin waved back, Erin, waving frantically.

“Will do!” Erin cried back.

When her dad glanced over his shoulder, Erin turned to him once more.

“I’ll be seeing you,” she simply said to him. He nodded.

After she had gone, he finally heard the familiar voices of Potter and Weasley parents.

“We are so sorry for the delay,” Aunt Hermione said, rushing to her daughter. “if it weren’t for _Ronald_ over here-“

“I said I was sorry! How else was I supposed to know that the car was out of gas?”

His Uncle George scoffed, smacking his younger brother in the head.

Somewhere, he heard snickers. Really, Uncle Ron was a bit daft sometimes, (Thank Godric Rose got her mother’s brains) but they still love him for that.

“Ginger!” someone suddenly cried behind him.

Before Albus could move a muscle, something warm and fluffy was lifted off his head. “Got you, you silly fat cat!”

“Erin?”

Grinning, she looked behind his shoulder. “I see your family’s here.”

“Oh, uh, yeah. They were running late.”

She laughed. “Where have I heard that before? Anyway, I just came back for Ginger. She was the tendencies to wander off under our noses.” Taking Ginger’s paw, she made him wave at Albus. He laughed. “See you, Albus!” and with that, she turned on her heel and left.

…

It was just one of those busy holiday season down at Diagon Alley – the massive crowd of witches and warlock, the strong smell of cinnamon and peppermint, and the warm spirit of Yule, filling out every corner.

With the permission of their parents, James, Albus, and Lily had set off to Diagon Alley. It was a sort of sibling bonding. They were _that_ close. Of course, there was family bonding, but nothing compares to the siblings’ bond. And besides, it was just for now.

“Look out, look out!” someone cried, the crowd magically parted in panic.

A flash of black and red passed by, leaving bystanders befuddled.

“Oh my!”

“What was that?”

“It looked like children.”

And children it was.

Three of them, to be exact.

All three in one sled.

Lily was shrieking joyfully as the snow skidded to the sides, the cold wind biting her skin.

Albus, on the other hand, was feeling sick. Why oh why did he let James talk him into this? Sledding?

James was laughing all the way, steering clear of the sled. They were off at full speed, passing through the crowds. The sled was a gift from Uncle George, one of his latest products – a speedy sled. Its speed only rivaled that of his Nimbus 5000. However, it wasn’t airborne, which was alright with him. (He did have his broom.)

“Woohoo!” Lily cried, tossing her hands in the air.

“Look out!” Albus cried in panic. He was never one for sports, he was more of a book person.

“Psh, leave it to me.” James swerved the sled to the slide, doing a 360-degree rotation, making Albus’ stomach turn, before parking the sled to the side.

Lily clapped, a bit woozy. “Let’s do that again!”

Getting to his feet, Albus clung unto the wall. “N-No, l-let’s… _not_ …d-d…o…tha…t…aga…in…”

“Woah! Al, you look peaky.” Says James, brushing the snow off his little sister. “C’mon, some hot chocolate will help you.”

He wanted to shrug off his brother’s touch but couldn’t. He was too dizzy and out to properly move. But he could use some hot chocolate. He loves chocolate.

“It sure is festive this time of the year,” remarked Lily as she held unto Albus’ hand, swaying it.

“It’s Christmas,” James huffed. “it’s supposed to be.”

“Haha, look, look!” she pointed with her free hand at the moving snowman display in one of the shops. She giggled when the snowman waved at the children watching, then danced haplessly.

“I can’t wait to get into Hogwarts!” Lily told her brothers.

“Aw, shucks, you’re going next year,” James said disdainfully. Though the idea of the youngest Potter entering Hogwarts was a welcoming one, he couldn’t help but be extra wary of her. He was particularly protective of his siblings, his sister most especially – like their father.

“I’m so excited! I can’t help it!” she cried.

“Lily, calm down,” Albus said, holding unto her hand with a firm grip. “You’ll get in next year, got it?”

“I just can’t help it! Hugo and I are finally getting in. Meaning, we won’t have to be alone and left out anymore. We’ll be with you guys.”

At that, James playfully screwed his sister’s hair much to her annoyance. “You’re such a sentimental little sweetheart, you know that?”

Lily only rolled her eyes at him, but smiled nonetheless, especially when she felt Albus squeeze her hand.

“Now, how about that hot chocolate you promised me?” Albus looked at James.

“Yeah, yeah,” James says, rolling his eyes at him.

He was too focused on his brother that he failed to notice a figure before him.

“Oh, sorry– hi there!”

Looking up, he finds Erin Alisdair. And she was dressed horribly; her hair was in twin tails and was clad in a red and white striped shirt, a green jumper and dark green boots. And to top off her outfit, she wore a red pointed hat. She looked like an elf.

“E-Erin?”

Beside him, he heard James snort. Lily thwacked his arm.

“Hiya!” she greeted toothily, her breathing coming out in puffs, her cheeks were flushed too. In her hand, she held a small pouch with a tiny bell. He wondered what was in the pouch.

He was about to ask when she took a step back and rang the pouch in hand. “Happy Christmas from me to you, and you, and you – to all three of you! Happy holidays spread the cheer! Don’t be nutty, just be queer! And please have some Christmas cookies!” she sang. Then she (practically) shoved the pouch into their faces.

“Oh, um, thanks.” He managed to say, digging his hand into the pouch. Pulling out his hand, he found that he had taken an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. The frosting was a badly drawn St. Nicholas winking. Like before, the cookies were huge. As he took a bite, he wondered if Scott was behind this baking.

James took as well, commenting on her outfit. Erin just laughed.

“Thank you,” Lily said quietly, munching on her cookie.

“You’re welcome, dear.” She tapped her nose, causing the redhead to giggle. “Well, I best be heading now. I’ve got work to do.” She lifted the pouch to prove her point. “Nice seeing you, all!”

And then she left. Erin then went around serving cookies, singing her chant to others.

“That was eventful,” James said, wiping off the crumbs on his mouth.

“She’s pretty.” Lily watched the smile on Erin’s face when she gave out free cookies; the smile was as vibrant as her purple hues. “And interesting. She somehow reminds me of Aunt Luna.”

Albus chuckles, putting his hands into his pockets, eyeing their usual café. “That’s what they all say.”

The _Café Mungo_ across was open, the café they often frequented with their parents. It was there that they sold the best hot chocolate, especially during the holiday season, it was a best seller.

Having ordered three, the siblings sat by the window, watching the scene of busy witches and warlocks. It was a few days before Christmas, and everyone was out in a rush.

Sipping on his drink, Albus stopped halfway when he noticed Erin giving out free hugs. Only, it wasn’t Erin after all. But he was dressed in the same red and white striped and green jumper as her. Oh, and that red pointed hats.

And there was another one, and he was giving out free hugs too. And another. And another. And another!

“There’s far too many elves around,” James commented, having noticed too.

“What’s happening?” Lily asked curiously, leaning closer to the window.

Albus shrugged, unable to answer, only busied himself with all these elves.

Having finished their drinks, James then noticed that it was getting dark and was set to bring his siblings home.

“Why hello there, dearie!”

Wait, was that Mister Alisdair? And why is he dressed like St. Nicholas?

He was sitting on a chair, listening to children’s wishes for Christmas. The boy sitting on his lap said something that made him laugh heartily. Momentarily, he caught sight of him and his siblings. He gave them a quick wink before attending to the next child.

“Hello Potters,” Scott said casually behind them, wearing the same outfit as Erin. Strapped around his neck was a lyre, his long fingers strumming.

“Scott Alisdair?” James looked at him head to toe. “What’s with the outfit?”

“As you can see, Potter, I’m an elf.” He says, strumming on his lyre. “A serenading elf. By the way, sweet sled.”

James smirked proudly, adjusting his hold on said sled.

Lily stared at Scott in awe, her eyes twinkling. And most alarmingly, her cheeks were turning red.

“Why are you all dressed like this?” wondered Albus with a raised brow.

Playing with the strings, Scott looked up with a small grin. “We’re just doing small acts of kindness.” He said nonchalantly. “It’s how we normally celebrate Christmas.”

“ _We_?” James said. “Who’s we?”

Playing with the strings one more time, producing a nice tune, Scott then stopped and winked at them. “You’ll see soon enough.”

As if on cue, a ringing was heard, catching the attention of everyone in the area.

The ringing came from Erin, who was sitting on her father’s shoulders. Immediately, the elf-dressed people rushed to them.

Curious, Lily took her brothers’ hands and dragged them with her to watch. They were in the front row, thanks to Lily’s quick feet.

Standing in the middle of Diagon Alley, the elf-dressed people fell into three horizontal lines, with Mr. Alisdair in the middle. Scott and Erin were at the side together with two more, each holding their own musical instrument (Erin’s was a violin).

“Alright, everybody ready?” Mr. Alisdair asked his team, who all muttered ‘yes’ under their breaths.

He swung one finger in the air, then two, then three, and then waved out his hands, cueing them to start singing. Their voices were melodic, sweet, serene, and calm. Everyone now stopped to listen, enjoying the sweet joy of Yuletide music.

Albus liked this, the sweet throes of their singing. He closed his eyes to listen better, liking how soothing their singing were, how their songs washed over the joyful warmth of the holidays. James and Lily, too, had enjoyed this Yuletide serenade.

Their moment of enjoyment was cut off when a few people started to get in front of them.

Just as they were about to protest, a warm hand lifted Lily up and hoisted her to his shoulders.

“Dad!” she cried happily.

At this, James and Albus turned to find their dad, their mum not far behind. Their mother smiled warmly, wrapping her arms around her two boys before turning her attention to the performance before them.

“How did you know we were here?” Albus asked.

Their dad shrugged. “We just knew.”

“Oh, come off it, Harry,” their mum said with a roll of her eyes. “what he failed to say was, we were supposed to bring you all here for this.” she ducked her head, gesturing towards the choir. “They do this every year.”

“Then how come we didn’t the last few Christmases?” Lily asked.

Both their parents chuckled, glancing at each other, then to their children. “It was a date between your mother and me then.”

At that, nobody said anymore. Their parents barked into laughter.

They sang about five more songs, filling the alley with music until they were done.

A warm applause lauded them, which surprisingly, came from a now huge crowd.

They bowed, before slowly dispersing into groups, pairs, leaving the only people who remained to be Erin and her family.

“Why, bless my soul, if it isn’t Harry Potter,” cried Mr. Alisdair. Seeing that he was with family, he grinned widely at them. ”and the family!”

“Marco Alisdair, looking good.” Their dad returned the gesture, engulfing the man into a handshake-turned-hug.

“Good to see you, good to see you,” pulling away, his eyes met their mother’s. “Ginerva, how are you?”

“So, Potters,” Scott appeared before them, separating the children from the adults, Erin beside him. “how did you like our little show?”

Erin watched them expectantly, clutching the violin against her chest.

“I think it’s lovely,” Lily said.

“Same,” James nodded.

When it was Albus’ turn, all eyes turned to him, he felt the blood rising to his cheeks. Oh, how he hated the attention.

“I-I loved it.”

“Yay!” Erin cried happily, throwing her hands in the air. She threw herself at her brother, laughing as they hugged. “I’m so glad you liked it!”

“What was it for anyway?”

“It’s just a thing my dad’s office does every year.” Scott provided, hooking his arm around his sister.

“Where does your dad work?” James had asked.

“He’s the head at Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects.”

“Whoa, just like Grandad!” Lily cried in astonishment.

“So, it’s a yearly thing?” Albus asked Erin.

“Yep!” she said proudly. “Scott and I have been actively participating since dad got his promotion and initiated this tradition. It’s a nice change, outside the desk, don’t you think?”

With her eyes trained on him, she took something from her pocket and unfolded something which grew with every unfold, revealing then to be a small pouch. Erin stored her violin in. It was when he was watching her was, he reminded of the cookies she gave him earlier.

“I’ve always been curious about the cookies...” When he realized the words that came out of his mouth, it had already been too late to take them back.

Thankfully, Erin had not taken offense or found this a single bit weird. Instead, he heard her chuckle. As if on cue, Erin held out the pouch and offered him some. He took one, observing the cookie. “Are they- “

“Yup! Made by Scott!” then she shoves the cookie into her mouth, digging in her pouch for a new one. He had to remind himself that it was one of those enchanted bags.

“Knew it,” he smirked, watching the tall lad speak with his siblings. Erin offered him some more, he obliged. They were delicious.

“Hey, where’s your grandfather by the way?”

Huffing her breathe, Erin’s lips formed into a straight line. “He’s at home. He’s rather cranky with crowds, didn’t want to come even when I pegged him.”

Albus laughed at that, she was so cute when she sulked.

“Sorry about that then.”

Just then, their parents called, announcing that they were leaving.

“Well,” he started, scratching the back of his head. “I’ll be seeing you.”

“Yeah, I’ll be seeing you too,” and then, without warning, she leaned in and pressed her lips on his cheeks. A blush quickly spread across his cheeks. His ears fell deaf to the catcalls and cheers from his and Erin’s family. When she parted, she laughed innocently at him and pointed at something above them – a mistletoe.

“Have a happy Christmas, Albus.”


	6. Third Year: Can You Keep A Secret?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Third Year: Can You Keep a Secret?]_ **

The moment they arrived at 9 ¾ Platform, the Potter family – most especially Harry, could already say that they had all grown up. With Lily now a first-year, James a fourth-year, and Albus a third-year, it just seemed like time flew by so fast. It seemed only yesterday when James had received his letter from Hogwarts, the same time Lily’s curiosity perked up, and Albus became a quiet observer. Truly, how time flies.

Lily was practically bouncing with joy at the sight of the red train; she cannot wait to get on. James chuckled as he helped their father with Lily’s luggage. Albus quietly watched them with his mother at his side.

He could hear his older brother going on about Quidditch practice with their father. Ginny Potter smiled fondly at her boys, her thin hand on her son’s hair. Their mother had a habit of petting their hair as if her children were pets. She couldn’t help it.

Over the summer, Albus’ had his hair cut, and try as much as he can, but the damned hair just never turned up the way he likes it, always sticking up from the backs-

“Albus!” someone called him, his mom’s hand raised up in the air in surprise.

Looking around, he found Erin at the far side of the station waving her hands frantically at him. Even from afar, he could feel her enthusiasm, finding himself waving back at her.

“Who is that?” Ginny asked curiously.

Beside him, he saw James smirk.

“She’s a friend.” He said before his brother could. James snickered at that.

“She’s cute.” Their father remarked holding Lily’s luggage.

Albus said nothing. (Though, he mentally agreed with his father on that. Erin _was_ cute.)

Turning to his mother, and stealing a quick glance at his father, he announces, “I’ll just go over and say hi.” Then he walks towards Erin, who was currently talking to Scott. “Hello Erin,” he greeted quietly, and then turned to greet her brother and father. “Scott, Mr. Alisdair.”

“Oho, Potter’s boy!” Mr. Alisdair hollered. “How are you, lad?”

“I’m fine Mr. Alisdair.” He said politely.

The resemblance was uncanny; Mr. Alisdair sure looked a lot like Scott, just more sophisticated and sharper in looks. Erin once said that he was once an Auror. But with his friendly face, one couldn’t tell he once fend off dark wizards.

“Off to another great start at Hogwarts, I see.”

Albus nods, politely. “Third year.”

“Ah,” he snaps his fingers at that, keeping the smile on his face. “interesting year, that. But interesting things happen all the time at Hogwarts. But it’s third year, and it’s a year of big changes.”

 _Big changes?_ Albus should keep that in mind.

“I can’t wait to receive letters from Erin, going on her third-year life. Oh, and speaking of Erin- “

“Ginger!” he heard Erin cry, taking him by surprise. “You silly cat!”

Albus slowly turned to Erin, Astley’s grey Persian cat in her arms. But there was no Astley in sight, just Erin in front of him. She wore a white plaid jumper, red hoodie underneath, a jean skirt, and a pair of sneakers.

 _Classic Erin,_ he thought. Mr. Alisdair all but slipped away, leaving the two teenagers on their own.

Cradling the cat in her arms, a shock crossed her face when she met his stare.

“You cut your hair!” she cried in disbelief, holding Ginger in one hand, and reached out to pet his hair with her other hand. “I always did have a hard time wondering if you were curly, or just had a permanent bed hair.”

“Permanent bed hair?” he wanted to laugh. Was that how she saw it?

Erin nodded, taking her nimble fingers back. “Yup! Just by the way it sticks in the back. Don’t worry, it’s adorable.”

A blush crept on his cheeks at that.

“Plus, it’s a wonderful shade of black. Raven, I think?”

That made him laugh, remembering their first-year conversation over her snow white-like hair.

“So, where _is_ everybody?” he asked, looking around for a familiar pale blond, chestnut brown, and two strawberry blonds.

“I don’t know either.” She shrugged, holding Ginger closer to her chest. “But Astley should at least be somewhere, with Ginger around.” In her arms, the cat meowed softly. Erin turned, her hair moving with her. “ _Huh_ , that’s weird.”

“Al!” somebody called. For a second, he thought it would be their friends, being that they all call him ‘Al’ now – except for Erin. Instead, they found Lily. “There you are!”

He rolled his eyes as his sister neared. “It’s not like I’ve gone _that_ far, Lily. Is there something you need?” Lily giggled at that. Erin stared at the younger girl, a gentle smile on her lips. Lily meets her gaze, a bit taken aback by her purple hues.

“So, you’re little Lily,” says Erin, bending slightly to the younger girl’s level.

“Hello.” Lily says, dotting a smile. Trust Lily to charm the pants out of anyone with just her smile.

“Aww, you’re cute. I’m Erin.”

“I know.” She grins, ear to ear. “I’ve heard a _lot_ about you.” Albus turned to her sharply, not liking her tone.

“Hmm?” Erin tilted her head in wonder. “Really?”

Lily turned to her brother; a small smile played her lips.

“Oh yeah.”

From afar, Mr. Alisdair and Scott watched as the younglings conversed. Marco Alisdair smiled at the smile on his daughter’s face while she went back and forth with the Potter siblings. Beside him was Scott, a green apple in one hand, and his palms pressed against his cheek while he rested his folded arm on his father’s shoulder.

“I’ve been eyeing that boy,” remarked Scott, gesturing his apple at Albus. “he seems awfully chummy of Erin.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” He took a bite of his apple again, crunching at the bite. “But he’s a nice lad, I’ll give him that.”

As he watched his daughter interact with Albus and Lily – which soon later was joined by the twins, Scorpius and Astley (in that order) arrived, he found himself ever glad of the way life has been to her.

…

Third-year was third-year.

It was just like any year.

Except it was a year that came with many changes, changes that proved that they were getting older and were needed to shoulder more responsibilities.

One of them was a brand-new study load with interesting subjects. Divination, for one. What a peculiar subject. But because Albus was one of the top students (second to Astley), it was no problem for him. Already, he was named as prefect for their year.

Of course, there was also the Hogsmeade visit.

The Hogsmeade visit, granted of course, with a signed permission from a parent or guardian, was all he thought about all day for the first month of school; it was the distraction he turned to when he wasn’t paying attention during Divination class.

Earlier, his older brother and siblings filled him in with what Hogsmeade had in store for them; it was simply a tiny heaven and their sanctuary from school. However, their galleons had to attest to their every joy. Still, it would be money well spent.

A sharp yelp broke him off his thoughts, looking up from his cup, he found a certain redhead dashing out of Miss Pompey’s room, the ends of her hair looked burnt. The wily woman watched her leave in confusion before squabbling on with the lesson.

He recognized the redhead to be one of Astley’s rivals (“haters is a crude name” she once told the twins, who came up with the name) and managed to catch her expression before she left, she seemed... _defeated_. Odd.

Albus turned to Astley, but her face gave nothing away, stern as ever, but somewhat contented. He could tell by the glint in her eyes. He honestly had no idea why she had haters in the first place. He met Erin’s gaze, she sat beside Astley, who smiled apologetically in turn, playing with the cup in hand.

While she did that, it gave Albus time to study her face, half-listening to Miss Pompey’s discussion.

She seemed fairer, the pink flush on her cheeks emanated her porcelain skin. Her hair was as dark as ever, flowing against her shoulders. He also noticed how full her cheeks were and how soft her jawline was. Very little has changed in her, he thought, compared to Astley whose features sharpened, emphasizing her Persian roots.

Oh, and then there was puberty, the other change third year brought.

Over the summer, Albus noticed that he had grown noticeably taller. He was once Lily’s height, but two days before summer was to end, he was practically his mother’s height! James was still taller than him though. It was in the Potter genes, his dad said proudly that day.

 _Puberty was weird_ , he thought. But staring at Erin Alisdair was weirder, along with the strange feeling fluttering in his belly because he _liked_ staring at Erin.

“...And that’s all for today children!” Miss Pompey says aloud, clamping her hands together. “Go now, and may destiny walk your path.” Whatever that meant.

With that, Albus put down his cup, staring at the odd figure on his cup one last time.

Divination was one of the few elective classes he took, which, coincidentally was what Scorpius, Lorcan, Lysander, Astley and Erin took as well. Honestly? He had no idea why he had chosen Divination in the first place. Because with Muggle Studies, he had his dad on that, and he was really torn between Arithmancy or Study of Ancient Runes.

“So, what was your reading?” asked Scorpius when they were walking down the hall.

Behind them, one of the twins, Lorcan or Lysander, yawned. “Ah, sorry?” which then earned him a painful whack in the head from the other.

“You first,” Albus obliged Scorpius, slinging his bag over his shoulder.

Running a hand through his pale blond hair, Scorpius says, “It was an apple. Which, according to Miss Pompey, means achieving knowledge.”

“Sounds like you.”

Scorpius smiles cryptically.

“I’m not sure what mine looked like though,” Albus says honestly, the four of them exiting Miss Pompey’s room. Astley and Erin had long gone ahead.

“Bloody shame.” Lorcan, or Lysander, mutters under his breath. He, again, receives a painful whack in the head from his twin. “Stop it!”

“Easy for you to say, you weren’t even listening!”

“Well that’s because it was bloody boring!” Lorcan, or Lysander, complained. “You slept too!”

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

“Scorpius?” the twins turned to the blond.

With a sigh, Scorpius says, rather monotonously. “Lorcan slept first, Lysander followed not long after.”

Lorcan, or Lysander, sputters, the other twin looks at the other with a crossed expression. And then, the twins were bickering at each other, causing a scene. Albus attempted to stop them but Scorpius interrupted him.

“Leave them be,” Scorpius advises Albus. “you’ll spare your sanity. I know I do.”

And that he did, all the way to the Great Hall. Behind them, the twins continued to bicker, Albus worried for them, to which Scorpius told him that they calmed down at the sight of food.

“So,” Scorpius asked, rolling his sleeves up his elbows. Over the summer, Scorpius’ lanky feature showed. He had a bit of muscle and he was a bit taller, but he was thin. Either way, his Malfoy features really showed. “about that tea reading.”

“You and tea readings,” muttered the raven head, sitting across him. “I swear I’d mistake Divination as _your_ favourite subject.” He took an apple and threw it at him.

Scorpius caught it with ease, a smirk in his face.

“Show off.” Since Scorpius played as Seeker for the Slytherin team.

“Says you.” Scorpius retorted back, taking a bite from the apple. A few months back, he had noticed that Albus had a good throwing aim and suggested he try out as a Chaser for the Gryffindor team. Albus shut him down, not interested in physical activities. “And _no_ , I do not have an inkling to Divination it’s called curiosity.” Albus rolled his eyes at that. “Now about that reading.”

Albus sighed in surrender, thumb playing with the material of his bag. “I’m not sure, but I think it was a cross between a horse and a bird. A giant thing. I don’t know really.”

Scorpius chewed, nodding. “Fascinating.”

“Should that mean something?” he asked, tilting his head.

“It should.” That came out rather dubiously.

Albus scoffed, not in a mean way, but in an amused way. “I’m seriously having doubts.”

“Let your doubts blind you of my real character then.”

He had to laugh at that.

“So, am I good to go now?”

“ _Yes, mum_.” Scorpius said in a singsong, the corners of his mouth lifted into a crooked smirk, Albus chuckled, he definitely got that from the twins.

“See you.”

Scorpius didn’t look up, busy munching on his apple and fixing his lunch plate but waved.

Having arrived at the Gryffindor table, his older brother, James was giving him a weird look, eyes darting from him to the Slytherin table.

“I’ll never understand why you’re friends with him.”

He rolled his eyes, setting his bag down “James, if this is from when he beat you were in second year, let it go.”

In front of them, their cousin snorted under his breath. James flushed angrily.

“And besides,” Lily chirped in. “isn’t the animosity between our parents supposed to be just between them?”

“It’s not that- “James tried to explain but was interjected by Rose.

“You just couldn’t accept the fact that he beat you in second year and he was a fresh recruit. Let. It. Go.”

Their table roared with laughter, with a beet red-faced James.

By some mercy, they shortly forgot about James’ bitterness towards Scorpius Malfoy over lunch and busied themselves with an overview of the youngest Potter’s and Weasley’s welfare in Hogwarts so far. Lily talked a mile, her eyes brimmed with life every time she opened her mouth. It was an adorable quirk of hers. Hugo, on the other hand, squabbled. Unlike his sister, his words came rather clumsily – something he got from their father.

A flash came out of nowhere – causing Lily and the rest of them to jump in their seats, followed by a resounding click that momentarily filtered out a familiar giggle.

The Weasley-Potter family turned, finding one Erin Alisdair.

“Hallo!” she set her camera down, taking the printed photo and waving it in the air.

“Sorry about that,” Astley appears beside Erin, towering next to her best friend, her chestnut brown in a side-ponytail. “she has a terrible habit of coming and going.”

“True that.” Says Scott Alisdair, resting his hands on his little sister’s head. “Potters, Weasleys.” He greets their table, saluting with two fingers. “are we intruding?”

“Not at all.” Lily says, in an alarmingly dazed tone. She stares at Scott dreamily, next to Roxanne and Rose. Scott, however, is oblivious to such.

“Actually,” James started rather tersely, grabbing the attention of his family. “we were about to talk to Al and Rose about their upcoming Hogsmeade visit.”

“Huh?” Albus turned to his brother in confusion. Clearly, he was not informed. But he should’ve said, _Again?_

“We were?” Rose second in.

Fred rolled his eyes, tossing a raisin into his mouth before putting both his hands on their heads and screwing it up.

“Fred!” Rose and Albus shrieked/cried in unison.

“I’d rather we don’t pay attention to this.” Hugo said with a pout. Beside him, Lily has her arms crossed against her chest. “Agreed.”

Scott chuckled at the two first years. “Then might as well take notes on what you should and shouldn’t do on _your_ visit.” He said coolly. “I know I did on my first visit and majority of my friends were seniors at the time.”

“You seem to have interesting friends. That makes you so mature.” Roxanne said with a sigh, resting her face against her hand. “Too bad we weren’t friends sooner. I might’ve learned from you.”

“You _might_.” Astley grumbled, fixing her cool gaze at Albus’ dark-skinned cousin. He was sure that look made Roxanne shiver.

Rose and Fred exchanged looks, as if asking _‘what’s wrong with Astley’_.

“You lot sure are big,” commented Scott, still resting against his sister’s head. “family-wise, I mean.”

“We sure are.” James said proudly. “Of Weasleys and Potters!” they hollered right back at him, ignoring the stares they were getting.

“Shame, it’s just me and Erin. Both our parents were an only child and no immediate relative who’s still alive.”

“I always thought Astley was your cousin.” James queried, shrinking under Astley’s gaze. Though, she was younger, but she seemed much older judging by her cryptic and cool gaze.

“Nah, she’s more of a family friend.” Supplied Scott, grinning widely at Astley, his long-braided strand whipped whenever he moved his head.

Albus noticed that Erin had yet to say anything, busying herself with waving the photo. He leaned towards her, as his family and Erin’s company – her brother and best friend – conversed.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. It just, takes a while for the photos to develop. And it’s not the lighting,” she still waved the photo in the air, a bit harder this time, her camera slinging on her side next to her rucksack. “I would know because the Great Hall’s lighting is immaculate.”

He was about to ask what she was talking about when slowly, the picture came to, much to Erin’s delight that she shrieked.

“Yay!” she showed it to the family, the lot of them leaning in for a look. Lily giggled at the sight of her expression.

“I look weird.”

“You look adorable.” Erin assured, pocketing the photo in her rucksack. “I promise you that.”

He was eyeing her rucksack, at the Hogwarts and Ravenclaw patch. Her rucksack was big, but yet, seemed lighter than it looked. His eyes flew to her Polaroid camera, remembering the last time she took a photo of him with Rose.

“So, do you just, walk around snapping pictures of everyone?” Albus asked Erin.

“Hmm, not really.” Erin admitted, adjusting the strap of her bag and the sling of her camera. “I take photos of people at their best, especially when it’s too late to notice I’m about to objectify their moment of sentimentality. And y’see Astley, Scott and I had just finished lunch and was just about to walk around when I caught sight of you and little Lily. Then I remembered meeting Lily at the train station but never really got the chance to snag a photo of her because I want to document the day I first met her, and my camera was elsewhere- “

“I think we get it, Erin.” Roxanne said kindly, calming her down.

“What about the twins?” he wondered. “Where are they?”

“Merlin knows where those twins are off to.” Says Astley, barely batting an eye. She really seemed to intimidate Roxanne, Fred, and James, while Lily just... _stared in awe_. “But they’ll come, they always do.”

“Anyways, we just dropped by to say ‘hi’, and now we’re off to say ‘bye’.” Taking both his sister’s shoulders, he turned her to the left and deftly walked forward. She seemed like a puppet then. “We’ll be seeing you!”

“Yeah...” Albus’ waved, watching as their figures disappeared into the great doors. Scott held out the door for both Astley and Erin.

“That Astley girl scares me.” Roxanne shares, taking a sip of her cranberry juice-filled goblet.

“Tell me about it,” James grumbles. “she reminds me of Aunt Hermione.”

“But she’s pretty,” Interjected Lily, her voice a bit of a whine. “really pretty and smart!”

“How do you even know she’s smart?” asked Rose, tucking a strand behind her ear, resting her chin on her arm.

“She looks smart.” Lily simply put out. “And she _sounded_ smart.”

“I thought it was the glasses,” Fred says with a laugh, earning a thwack in the head from Rose. “So, about that Hogsmeade visit.” Fred raised his voice at the changed topic, ignoring the glares from Hugo and Lily, resting his hands against the table. “I can’t wait to head to Zonko’s.”

“Why, whadda they have?” the excitement in James’ voice was amiss, despite his mouth being full earning a complaint from the girls.

“Why is the upcoming Hogsmeade visit such a big deal to you lot?” Albus asked rather exasperatedly, running a hand through his hair.

“No reason,” James said with a shrug. “just, welcoming Rose and you to the newest steppingstone of your Hogwarts life.” He seriously had to raise a brow at that, not getting it.

“What he means to say is,” Roxanne swatted her cousin. “that this visit officially marks your adulthood here in Hogwarts. And it’s a _Hogsmeade visit_ , and that you should just enjoy yourselves.”

“Hello,” Hugo waved his voice monotonous, waving his hand in the air. “right here, we can’t relate.”

They laughed.

“Cheer up Hugo, Lily; it’s only two more years until your Hogsmeade visit!” Fred said, as if it would make them feel better.

…

The Hogsmeade visit was fast approaching. Albus already had his signed permission, so he was good to go. As were his friends – Astley and Scorpius (sometimes, Fred would label them as his ‘ _aristocratic mates’_ ) The twins, on the other hand, had to a last-minute on theirs.

Erin giggled, watching them clumsily running towards the owlery.

“So, I guess this means they won’t be in Defense Against the Dark Arts.” Astley notes, pushing her glasses back with the tip of her wand.

“Seems that way.” Said Erin, who seemed so short compared to the rest of them. She was less than ecstatic today; everything about her seemed forced – her smile, the glimmer in her eyes, and the tone of her voice.

Albus would’ve asked her what was wrong, but when they had reached their room, he had long forgotten and found himself focused and intrigued. All he remembered was the summers his dad would personally give him (and his older brother) a crash course on Defense Against the Dark Arts. He once asked if it was cheating, to which his dad laughed at, but said that there was nothing wrong with getting ahead.

Their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was a tall, dark woman with a shaved head named Phoebe de Fer, an ex-Auror from Europe, who had been teaching for seventeen years already. According to his family, her foreign tongue is as sharp and stern as her attitude. In their first few weeks, she was merciful enough (at least in her terms) to have her students take out their textbooks – _The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts_ by Arsenius Jigger, read it, learn from it and write a two-page essay.

For a while, Albus could forget the advantages he got from getting an early start at spells. Because right now? He could really use a break from it all, and DADA with Miss de Fer had just begun to get tedious (something his family forgot to add).

Erin sat beside him (he shared a table with the aristocratic mates and Erin, the twins sat at the back), staring blankly into her book. When he stole a glance, he saw how her face relaxed a bit and that her thoughts flew elsewhere.

During class, he also noticed that when Miss de Fer turned her back, there were notes/notes-turned-paper-cranes being passed around. He wondered what they were about before Miss de Fer told them to turn to the next page.

So came the night before the weekend and he found himself at the library with the gang, with the special addition of his little sister, Lily and Erin’s brother, Scott.

Apparently, Lily purposely sought him out just so she could get a glimpse of his interesting set of friends. Also, she needed help with Herbology and Transfiguration.

Unfortunately, Albus was caught up writing two essays he must finish, so he can have a stress-free weekend. (Apparently, the rest of them were doing the same thing.)

Luckily, Astley was kind enough to lend her a hand. Albus swore he saw his sister’s eyes sparkle.

With that done, Albus turned to the parchments before him and continued where he left off. For some reason, he sat next to the Alisdair siblings. Scorpius sat at the head of the table, reviewing on his essays. Lorcan and Lysander, who had already got their permission hours ago, were serving detention for missing class. Lucky for them, detention wasn’t _that_ severe, their Hogsmeade visit wasn’t jeopardized.

“Scott, you’re scaring me the way you’re looking at Astley.” Erin whispers smiles at her big brother – Scott, her voice came like a hushed whisper. “Just talk to her already!”

The older sibling sighs, playing with his braided hair. “It’s not easy as it looks Erin.”

“Why not?” she asks quizzically, looking from her brother to the brunette across them, who was explaining something carefully to one Lily Potter. “You’ve known her for forever and you chicken out _now_?” Scott frowned at her.

“Why’re you so curious about Astley?” Albus found himself asking, peering at the older Alisdair curiously.

Erin squeaked, almost forgetting that he was there. Darting her eyes from him to her brother, chewing on her lower lip, mentally debating whether she should tell him or not.

“Truthfully, she always has this look of deep and utmost concern on her face.” Scott says.

Erin gasped, whacked her brother’s arm lightly. The action caused their subject to look at them inquisitively, before returning to Lily.

“That sounded stupid, Scott.” Berated Erin.

With a sigh, Scott slowly stands from his seat, muttering a ‘goodnight’ at them all before leaving their table – and the library, entirely. Erin pouting at his departure.

“What was that about?” Albus asked, quite curious now.

Blinking, still pouting, she leans to whisper. “Astley’s one of the few half-bloods in Slytherin.” She said quietly, it wasn’t a shock since he’s already been told this. “And people would rather that she be in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw than to be a Slytherin.” Suddenly, the pieces came together. So that’s why some of the Slytherin girls looked at her distastefully. “But what do they know? Astley’s got a lot of things up her sleeve.”

He chuckled quietly, threading the feather of his quilt over his hair. “You’re rather protective of her.”

“Not protective,” she protested. “but proud. She is my best friend after all!”

But that didn’t really answer all of his questions, he didn’t push her. Instead, he asked if he could look at her essay.

…

Snow fell that weekend, crisp white snow on a Hogsmaede visit. Wonderful.

Students – third year and above – flocked the quaint little village, hustling and bustling every corner with treats in hand. Some came in a group, some came in doubles – couples, which would explain the exchanging notes during DADA.

Wrapping the scarf around his neck, he had to admit that he was enjoying his time, especially Honeyduke’s dark chocolate. (Albus bought two bags of assorted sweets for Hugo and Lily) He was trailing behind his family, listening to their – mostly James and Fred’s, squabble about Quidditch. Training was getting ridiculously harder, in time for the first season against Ravenclaw. ( _They’re very strategic,_ James said. _But we won’t lose!_ )

When the family arrived at Three Broomsticks, it was crowded – _per usual_ , said James and Fred.

Seeing a free table on the far side of the pub, Fred immediately ran towards it, clumsily landing on his face in the process.

Roxanne put a hand on her face, embarrassed for her brother. “I’m coming for you, Frederick.” James snickered, trailing after her. Rose and Albus followed as well, both embarrassed by their cousin’s actions but laughing.

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw two familiar heads of chestnut and ebony.

Turns out, it was Astley and Scott by the corner. The older Alisdair was all smiles, while Astley’s looked like she was assessing him. It was a weird sight. What made it weirder was the fact that it was just the two of them, no Scorpius, the twins, or Erin, just them.

“Hey Al,” James called before him. “what do you want?”

His brother and the family seemed unaware of the two people at the corner of the pub, “Chicken pot pie.” He said immediately, then turned back to Astley and Scott.

The tips of his ears reddened; he could feel it. _Could they be?_ He would have to hold to that, as their lunch was served, and the family engrossed themselves about school.

“Frederick George, we’ve been together for how long,” Came Roxanne’s voice, rising with each word. “but why, in Godric Gryffindor’s name, did you order _that_?” she pointed with her fork, her face painted into disgust.

Fried pickles.

Fred specifically asked for _fried pickles_.

Even he had to admit, despite Fred’s odd tendencies, this was weird. Not to mention, downright gross.

Fred didn’t seem to mind, as was James.

“What’s wrong about it?” he asked, taking a bite out of it.

Roxanne’s face twisted at the crunching sound. “It’s revolting!”

“I digress that.” Said Fred, highly offended by his sister’s statement. “I’ll have you know that if you deep fry things, they taste better.” He tossed the last of the food into his mouth, leaning back on his seat with his arms crossed against his chest.

“Chips, doughnuts, fried chicken, maybe. But a pickle, seriously? And for the record, they’re cucumbers!”

“Weak argument.” Fred shook his head, taking another fried pickle.

“I am so glad I took most of mum’s genes.” Roxanne muttered under her breath, taking a bite of her pasta salad.

“What was that?”

Roxanne shook her head, laughing lightly. Rose and he laughed with her.

After lunch, James suddenly announced that he and Fred had to go. It seemed like they were in a hurry. ( _And was that the invisibility cloak in his bag?_ )

“What’s gotten into them?” asked Roxanne, pointing at them with her fork.

Albus and Rose shrugged their shoulders

“Well, I don’t know about you two, but I have to meet my friends at the hairdressing salon to get our nails done. Would you like to come, Rose?”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.” Roxanne’s friends mostly talked about... _things,_ Rose was not ready for that conversation just yet _._

“Shame then. I’ll see you all at the castle!” she waved off, before walking away from them.

…

Albus was walking back to the castle alone.

Earlier, as he was Rose strolled around, she met up with a few of her friends and decided to go with them. However, she worried about leaving Albus alone. He assured her though, that he’ll be fine, and made an excuse that he had some Herbology reading to do.

The snow crunched under his boots as he trekked to the castle, keeping his eyes to the ground.

Up ahead, the footbridge drew near, his boots creaking against the wood as he walked. He was already halfway in the footbridge when he heard a soft hum. He stopped in his steps and looked up, surprised to find who it was.

It had occurred to him that he hasn’t seen her all day.

Even at Hogsmeade – he happened upon Scorpius and the twins at Spintwitches, no doubt buying some Quidditch gear. He was with Rose then and introduced them to her cousin. Of course, there was Astley and Scott during lunch at the Three Broomsticks, which he’s dying to ask from Erin sometime soon, maybe _now_.

Erin – clad in a yellow dress, a white sweater underneath a thick red and black plaid jacket with short sleeves, brown stockings, and her ratty sneakers – was sitting on the wooden ledge, her hands on either side of her, holding unto the ledge, her body leaning against the wooden post as her legs dangling off. She fixed her eyes at the gray sky, watching tiny snowflakes fall as she bobbed her head side-to-side while humming a tune under her breath. He recognized the tune to be one of those Christmas muggle songs.

A maddening blush crossed his face, recalling the events that happened last Christmas.

“Isn’t that dangerous?” he asked aloud, too loud.

Undeterred, she leaned back a bit, surprised to find him there. She stopped swaying her legs.

“Albus,” she said, her lips curving into a smile. “hey.”

Annoyed at her lack of concern for herself, he took it upon himself and walked towards her. They were practically miles above the ground and dropping did not sound like a good idea. Plus, the footbridge was hundreds of years old, he didn’t care about the fact that it can stand for a hundred years more, it was a fragile construction.

“Get down from there.” He demanded.

She cocked her head to the side, her hair falling against her shoulders. Godric, she looked adorable like that-

“What’s gotten into you?” she asked, slowly getting down from the ledge, concern in her tone.

Flustered, he avoided her gaze. “S-Sorry, it’s nothing.”

“It can’t be nothing if it’s bothering you.” She said, walking towards him.

“I-I just...” he closed his eyes, exhaling through his nose. “It’s nothing really, Erin.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

She watched him with curious purple eyes, her face etched with worry.

“Really?” she asked again, those purple hues piercing him.

He sighed again. “Really.”

Convinced, she began to smile, he can’t help but smile back. Standing a bit straighter, she patted his shoulder. “You’ll be alright, Albus.”

“Thanks.”

“I _was_ waiting for someone.”

“Someone?” he repeated, raising a brow at her.

She giggled as she nodded, purple eyes crinkling when she did that. They were a vibrant purple, an eye color he thought impossible to possess unless you were a fairy. But Erin sometimes passed as a fairy to him, given her physical features and vibrant attitude.

“Can I ask you something?” he took a step forward, their difference in height showing. He took a deep breath, wondering why his question weighed more than it should when he felt a presence behind him. He looked over his shoulder, finding Astley. Just Astley.

“So, how was it?” Erin asked, specifically Astley.

Blinking once, twice, she eventually said, “Eventful.” a tight smile on her lips.

“Uh-oh,” Erin walked towards her. “why?”

“I’ll fill you in later.” Astley began to walk, Erin right beside her. When they passed by him, Erin smiled apologetically. He just nodded, unable to meet Astley’s gaze (not that she seemed to notice nor minded).

So, Erin was referring to their date – he had speculated that, it was indeed, a date.

Moreover, that obviously meant that she hadn’t left the castle grounds. And judging from her clothes, she was outside, longer than waiting for Astley. But the question was, where was she this whole time?

…

The next weekend, Erin was nowhere to be found, as did the following weekends.

The follow weekends had alternated between hanging out with his family and friends. He has two kinds of friends; his Gryffindor friends, and his camaraderie of friends – Astley, Scorpius, Erin, Lorcan and Lysander. The latter, he was much closer and more comfortable with. However, in those visits, Erin was never around. And when asked of her whereabouts, they’d all shrug. She had a signed permission, he knew that from Astley, but she just never seemed to be on the outskirts of Hogsmeade.

So, one day, Albus thought he’d visit an old friend – Hagrid.

He had met the giant when he was younger. He was a family friend. No soon later, he became a friend to the next generation of Potters and Weasleys.

Albus would frequently visit Hagrid’s humble hut during his free time, making small talk, like his father used to do. At times, his older brother would accompany him. It was only during his second year when he stopped making his visits, that was when he was busy with prefect duties.

He thought it would be best to visit the giant that weekend instead of heading to Hogsmeade.

The moment he saw the hut, he can’t help but smile. It was the same as always – tiny, for someone as big as him, yet homey. There was a tiny pumpkin patch, with small round pumpkins, and a tiny herb garden.

He was standing outside the door before he knew it, then he knocked twice. A few seconds later, he heard someone on the other side of the door until it opened, revealing the giant.

“Hello Hagrid.”

“Albus!” he cried jovially, not expecting him, engulfing him in a quick hug. “What a pleasant surprise! Come in, come in!”

Entering, he was surprised to find how neat and organized the place was, as opposed to how he remembered it to be.

“Woah, what happened in here?” he asked, looking around in awe.

Hagrid was usually not one for tidiness, since he moves around a lot, leaving things in a clutter (but he always knew where his things were underneath those clutters). There was a desk by the window, where he had a view of his pumpkin patch, with papers held down by a rock on one side, and a few unread letters weighted down by an empty mug.

“What?” Hagrid asked, putting the kettle on.

“This – everything.” Albus gestured around him.

“Oh, _that_.” He huffed. “It’s a long story.”

“I’m all ears,” he says, sitting on one of the couches _. Well, at least the couches were the same_ , he thought.

Playing with his beard, Hagrid looked over at the neatness of everything, eyes looked like they were conflicting. He was just about to speak when the door suddenly burst open.

“Hey Hagrid, I’m back- “upon seeing Albus, her expression immediately changes, brightened even more (if possible). “Hi Albus, I didn’t know you were here!”

He blinked, stupefied. Why was _she_ here? More importantly, how on earth did _she_ know Hagrid?

“Erin, how was it?”

A high-pitched whistling bustled in the air, Hagrid quickly fetched to their tea. He gave one to Albus, who wrapped his fingers around the mug for warmth.

“It went well,” she began with a tired sigh, dropping her bag to the side and helped herself to tea offered to her. “Buckbeak II turned out to be a female,” she said, placing a sugar cube into her tea. “Oh, and she just laid a few eggs and won’t be flying anytime soon until they hatch.”

The giant hummed, arranging another cup of tea. When he took the cup in hand, it was then that her words dawned upon him.

“Blimey!” his eyes darted open, startling from his seat. “A female hippogriff! I did _not_ see that.”

Erin giggled, sipping on her tea. “My thoughts exactly.”

“How did that happen? I was certain Buckbeack II was male.”

Albus darted back and forth from Erin to Hagrid, momentarily invisible to both.

“Maybe you weren’t certain enough.” she laughed into her tea.

“Hoho, clever girl.” he winked at her playfully, to which she laughed at again.

He continued to watch them talk back and forth about the hippogriff. He was confused. Seeing the confusion of Albus’ face, Hagrid began to explain. He scratched the back of head awkwardly.

“Erin here’s volunteered to be my assistant.” The giant motioned to the said young teen. “Even being such a pushover, turned out, she’s been a great help. Ah,”

“What is it, Hagrid?” asked Albus, worriedly.

“There was something in the back of my head, I should mention as well. Hmm, what was it?” Face scrunched, it lightened later. “I seemed to have forgotten. Nah, never mind. It probably isn’t important. Or is it?”

Well, aside of course from the fact that he was their professor on Magical Creatures, how on earth was she _this_ familiar with the giant? She knew exactly what kind of tea he preferred, where his pants should be, and that he liked his musical instruments kept in a brass box his mother gave him as a child.

Erin told him that she was quite observant, and that she often did this for her grandfather, father, and brother at home. She was the only girl after all who knew exactly how to keep things in order.

“That must be hard.” He commented.

But Erin only giggled, she always giggled.

“Not really, but it’s like I’m the head of keeping everything neat and tidy.”

“Hoho, you’re beginning to sound like Hermione!” Hagrid said with a laugh.

“And my mum,” Albus joined in, his mug half-empty now. “she’s such a neat freak.”

“Either way, things at home never come to a point where it’s like a tornado just visited. Everyone knows just what to do. Also, it’s maybe because they didn’t want to upset me.”

Erin shortly stopped when her eyes landed on Hagrid’s desk. “Excuse me.” She immediately reached into her bag and took out her report – it was about the creatures he asked her to watch – and set it neatly on Hagrid’s desk, right next to his brass box. Once done, she began to stretch her limbs.

“Well, that’s about it for today.” Erin announced. “We better get going now.”

“Well, thank you for the help again, Erin. And for the revelation.” They laughed, this time, Albus joined in. “You take care now.” He said to them, taking their cup in his hands.

Closing the door behind them, Erin skips along to Albus’ side. A smile adorned her lips as she stared at her surroundings, her hands folded behind her.

“So, this is where you’ve been all this time?”

“Yep!” she nodded, scratching her nose. “Since last year, actually.”

“I never noticed.” They were always together – with the gang, so how was it that he failed to notice her gone?

“That’s because I slip under your noses!” she cried proudly, turning around to meet his gaze.

“So, Astley,” she shakes her head “Scorpius,” shakes head “the twins,” shakes head “not even your own brother?”

“Well, Scott knows.”

“So why drop by?”

“Oh, Albus,” she turned to him, a light frown on her face. “you wound me!”

“Huh?”

“Remember last year? What I kept babbling about on what I want to be when I grow up?”

He stopped to think, digging his hands into his pockets.

“Enlighten me.”

Erin stopped walking, looked at him in the eye. There was excitement in them, like she’s dying to tell the world. “I wanted to be like my grandpa and my mum – a magizoologist! That’d be so cool! Looking and studying the creatures. Or better yet why not be a professor and share with my students all that I know of them creatures!”

He laughed at her enthusiasm; she was almost like a firework. And she said it so passionately, like she was sure she’d make it, not that he doubted her.

Turning on her heel, she began to skip one foot to another, her hands behind her while she hummed something under her breath. Behind her, Albus quietly followed. The silence between them was comforting.

They were walking up the rocky steps, and once upon a time, he stumbled over and got a scratch on his leg. But Erin looked like she had no trouble at all. He was fascinated by how easy the trek up was for her; she didn’t struggle, even with a pair of (worn out) sneakers. He wondered just what she did back at Romania, remembering their talk on baby dragons.

Seeing that he was so behind her, he sped up. He hadn’t notice her stopping until he was already beside her. He was panting hard.

Turning to him, she asked, “Can you keep a secret for me?”

Albus raised a brow. “That depends on how deep it is.”

She giggles, looping her arm around his. “Oh, I promise you,” she pulled him towards the forest. “it is pretty deep.”

**…**

“Holy hippogriffs!” he cried in surprise when something emerged from the trees.

A four-legged creature, with a head of an eagle and a body of a horse, but instead of hooves, it had strong talons. And wings, it had a mighty wings that were folded on its sides. It was gray in color, its eyes a beady brown.

She laughed at his reaction, “You said it!” the winged creature was undeterred by his reaction, merely watching the two.

Still stupefied, Albus struggles with the right words without having to offend her. “H-How…?”

“It’s a long story.” Was her best explanation before curtsying before the majestic creature. It bowed back. The smile on her face grew as she sped up to him, taking its head into her hands. She rested her head against it, caressing its head affectionately. “Hello there, you.”

Albus stares, before finally getting himself to bow as well. Delighted, the winged creature bowed in turn, making a satisfied cry.

“W-What’s its name?” he asked curiously, bravely walking up to them.

“ _Her_ ,” she corrected, smoothing her fingers against its feathers. “Her name’s Marlowe.”

“Isn’t that a boy’s name?”

She giggles, unable to answer him.

She seemed so natural with the hippogriff, laughing at when it gently pecked her torso

When he was close enough, he slowly reached out a trembling hand and attempted to pet her. Marlowe cawed, causing him to drop his hand like it was hot.

“Try again,” Erin encouraged with a smile.

He took a deep breath, looking from her to the winged creature. Slowly, he lifted his hand. Slowly, he reached out to touch its head. He met her gaze, a beady gaze that was filled with curiosity. And then, there were feathers underneath his fingers, the feathers on her head were so tiny that it almost felt like fur against his touch.

Releasing a shuddering breath, he petted Marlowe again, who leaned against his touch.

“Aw, I think she likes you already.”

“Already?” he laughed, “well, I think the feeling is mutual.”

Four legs. Giant wings. A bit of a giant creature. Wait, wasn’t that what he saw during Divination? At the thought of it, he smiled. Fate indeed has walked its path on him

Petting her one last time, he took a step back to admire the winged creature.

Well, Marlowe _and_ Erin.

Erin took Marlowe’s head in her hands, gazing into Marlowe’s eyes. And he swore, he saw a wave of unexplainable emotion cross for just a quick second before resting her head against hers again, Marlowe was quiet, the gesture seemed intimate, showing how deep their bond was. She clearly adored the hippogriff by the way she gently petted her head, or the gentleness in her eyes when she leaned back to meet its gaze. Marlowe had seemed more than a pet to her – she was her friend.

Marlowe cawed happily, Erin and Albus laughed.

“How long have you had her?” he can’t help but ask.

Humming in thought, she picked at the feathers on Marlowe’s head. “Since I was four, I think? I didn’t know her gender then and just named her Marlowe, because I thought that name was funny and nice.”

Albus couldn’t help but laugh at that, watching the gentle creature, it was such an Erin response.

Suddenly, the hippogriff nudged her arm with its head, causing Erin to turn to her in question. Marlowe nudged her head to Albus’ direction. He frowned slightly.

Finally understanding what she wanted, she turned to him. “Do you want to ride her?”

Despite his fear for extreme activities, he found himself saying. “C-Can I?”

“Of course!” she says with a nod.

**…**

The only four-legged creature he remembered riding was a horse, and he was 12, which was some time ago. And now at 13, the next four-legged creature he was riding on just happened to have wings. He remembered his father telling them of when he rode a hippogriff, he was also 13 at the time. And like him, it was quite terrifying.

Underneath him, he could feel the feathers of the hippogriff and its stumpy back, his feet were far from the ground.

Patting Marlowe’s gently, Erin turned to him over her shoulder. “You alright back there, Albus?”

“E-Er, not really-“

“Let’s go!” she hollered happily, her hippogriff cawing happily as well as she took off.

“Erin!” he panicked, feeling as though all the air in his lungs disappeared when he felt Marlowe picking up speed. Among them three siblings, he wasn’t the most adrenaline-inclined; he was more academic-inclined. Sure, he enjoyed watching Quidditch, but only from the sidelines.

He felt the hippogriff beneath him run. Godric, it ran fast. What powerful legs she had!

Running past the trees made him nervous, almost losing his lunch. He had to close his eyes; he could hear the wind gushing against his ears violently. His ears might’ve popped along the way.

Moments later Marlowe was no longer running, she just stopped.

He felt the wind against his cheeks, whipping against his hair, caressing his skin.

He wondered what happened.

“Haha, you can open your eyes now!” Erin says.

And he did.

His eyes widened, realizing that they were flying. And this flying was different from when he was riding a broom or in his uncle Ron’s car. This kind of flying was amazing.

Marlowe’s wings were spread, flapping mightily against the wind, its legs folded. The hippogriff just looked graceful in the sky.

He could see the clouds, looking like cotton candy up close. He saw the mountains, stretching over for miles and miles, creatures from the water to the sky, skipping merrily. It was a sight.

In his father’s words when he was flying on the hippogriff, it truly felt _magical_.

Mesmerized by the view, he said. “W-Wow, this is amazing.”

“I know right?”

Spreading her arms out to her sides, Erin closed her eyes, feeling the wind caressing her. And then she laughed.

Albus stopped at the sight of her. She was stunning. _No_ , she was enchanting. But she was also so _beautiful_.

His thoughts died when Marlowe took a rather steep dive, taking Albus by surprise that he wrapped his arms around Erin’s waist. She laughed when he did that.

Slowly, they flew back up, over the Great Lake, where they had a spectacular view of Hogwarts. He could make out the Ravenclaw tower, the Astronomy tower, the owlery, the Whomping Willow, and even the Quidditch oval. Everything was so clear up here, so beautiful. He felt like he was looking into a painting.

“You can let go now.” She told him.

Realizing that he had been holding unto her for far too long, a maddening blush had spread across his face. “O-Oh, sorry about that.”

Erin only laughed, again.

After a while, Marlowe circled around the castle grounds before heading towards the forest, back to where they found him.

Once they landed, Albus dropped first – surprisingly, on his steady feet. Erin followed, bowing at Marlowe one more time before Marlowe flew off to a certain direction, cawing at the two.

“Bye Marlowe! I’ll see you tomorrow!” she called back, waving at her.

“Where is she going?” he asked, watching her fly away.

“They have a specific ground,” Erin says. “Like the merpeople with the river and the centaurs on the darkest corner of the Forbidden Forest.”

“How do you-“

“Student assistant!” she says proudly.

“Ah,” he nods, scratching his cheek. “and how long have you been doing this? Coming to the forest for Marlowe, I mean?”

Erin thinks, puckering her lips. “Since, first year, I guess?”

“Really? How?”

“I snuck him in during our first year,” she confessed, Albus almost toppled forward at that. Her expression was cheeky, unashamed. “got into deep trouble when they found out and nearly accosted a hundred points from Ravenclaw. They almost had to get my grandpa or daddy for it, but I had to fight for Marlowe myself. I fought a tooth and a nail for him.” She laughed, her eyes crinkling, making her eyes look non-existent.

“W-Wait, so you mean to tell me that they nearly got you expelled?”

“I never said that, but that was another option. However, when they knew who my grandfather was, and the Headmistress clarified that it was never mandated to not keep a hippogriff as a pet, they didn’t argue. In the end, I got to keep Marlowe.”

“So, this is where you run off to every weekend.”

“Yup.”

“Why?”

“Can you keep another secret?”

“Uh, sure.”

Leaning in, excitement in her eyes, she shared. “Well, it’s not really a secret. But I just wanna tell you,” her voice quieted down as if she was wary of anyone listening even though it was just them. “I want to be a Magizoologist when I grow up.”

“A Magizoologist?” he repeated. “Wait, you already said that-“

“Or the next Hagrid! Think about it: _Professor_ Erin Scott Alisdair, professor of care of Magical Creatures.” Her voice was laced with so much admiration and awe. He could tell that she really aspired to be any of the two.

“It wasn’t until our third year began that I became Hagrid’s student assistant.”

“Let me guess, right after our first day of Hagrid’s class did you run after him, begged him to be his assistant.”

She gasped. “How did you know?”

“Lucky guess.” He laughed, but really, he recalled how giddy she was even class started. “I think you’ll be great. Being either a Magizoologist or Professor, I mean.”

“You really think so?” her voice was hopeful, too childlike.

“I know so.” He assured her.

A flush crossed her cheeks, a sincere smile breaking into her lips.

“Thanks, Albus,” she says, standing in front of him, his tall frame towering over hers. “that means a lot.”

Puberty was weird, he thought. Especially with the way they made weird things run in his stomach when Erin was this close, and how his cheeks burned.

They began to walk again, in the silence, appreciating their surroundings. Albus’ mind had gone to work, watching Erin from the corner of his eye.

The sky was now a contrast of purple and orange, the sun was about to set. The end of a new beginning.

“Say, Erin…”

“Hmm?”

“Uh...are Astley and Scott dating?”

Taken by surprise, Erin stops in her tracks and looks at Albus. She blinked once, twice. And then, she replies with, “Scott just fancies her is all!” Realizing that she said it aloud, and that they were in the castle grounds already, she immediately clamped her hands over her mouth and looks from side to side. “Oh, but I shouldn’t have said that!”

“I can keep this a secret.” He offered. He may have come from a nosy family, but he knew when to keep his mouth shut on a sensitive topic.

“Really? You would do that?”

He nods. She smiles.

“Thanks, Albus!”

“No problem. I know loads of secrets and I don’t tell a soul, even if my life depended on it.”

Erin giggled, failing to miss the look in his eyes.

Him beginning to fancy Erin Alisdair was one of those secrets.


	7. Third Year: A Shoulder To Cry On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Third Year: A Shoulder to Cry On]_ **

It was second semester, and still, Erin had not gone to Hogsmeade.

Their friends would wonder where she’d be when she wasn’t with them, and she’d retaliate with a riddle-like answer of her whereabouts. They pretty much assumed that she was in school most of the time, doing Merlin knows what. While in reality, she actually chose watching over the magical creatures for the rest of her weekend instead of spending galleons.

He figured when he woke up late that weekend, that he would grab some late breakfast when he found Erin sitting by the entrance hall steps, an opened letter in hand. In the peaceful silence of the morning, she seemed at ease, pouring herself every word, a smile graced her lips. Erin was always smiling, but this smile was a gentle one, soft.

For once, hair was set into low pigtails with a red beanie. She looked cute, almost normal if not for her chosen attire – a long dress over a thick jacket, and her sneakers. Taking another step, the longer he stared at her, the more he could appreciate her in this silence. Erin seemed relaxed, calm, so he hated that he had to break the silence.

“Letter from your dad?” he asked curiously.

Surprised, she looked up to meet his eyes, even her eyes were smiling. “Albus, hello!”

“I thought I told you to call me ‘Al’.” He grumbled, slowly walking up to her.

Of all his friends she was the only one who called him by his full name. Not that he seemed to mind, but his name was just so long.

“No, you didn’t.” She said playfully.

He rolled his eyes, smiling nonetheless, before sitting a few steps from her. He stared at the letter in her hand, as if bringing up his forgotten question.

“My daddy’s doing well,” she announces, confirming that it was in fact from her father, looking back at the letter. “he and grandpa may sometimes not look eye to eye, but they’re fine.” Setting the letter down in her lap, she huffs a breath. “Three years here, and already Hogwarts feels like home. But” her voice was quiet, almost sad. “sometimes, being here makes you just miss your family so much.”

He nods quietly, mulling at her words. “But hearing from them just eases it, right? The missing them, I mean.”

She laughs, turning to him. “Right!” her laughter turned into giggles, he wondered if that was even remotely possible. “I write to my daddy two times a week – sometimes three, to keep him posted about me or Scott.”

“Scott doesn’t write to your father?”

“Oh, he does, but not as much as I do.” She folds her letter away, putting it in her bag. “He says I’m such a daddy’s girl.”

“Just like Lily,” he laughs, that much was true, slowly standing up.

“Were you about to catch breakfast?” she queries.

“Are they still serving?”

“I think so.” She said, dusting her skirt when she stood up, she read the time on the giant clock – it was five past nine. “they stop serving at 9. But I’ll let you in a little secret,” she skips to him, putting a hand to her mouth as she whispered. “I know someone who’ll snag us some treats at the kitchen!”

“Really?” he looks at her in disbelief.

“Really.” Turning on her heel, she didn’t have to look back for Albus to follow, she just knew he’d go along.

And he did.

As it turns out, there _was_ someone who’d give them something at the kitchens. An elf named Ikki, the same elf Erin frequented whenever she was hungry or when she needed a late breakfast. He gave them some cheese bagel, two apples, and a goblet of milk. At the sight of cheese bagel, he suddenly remembered their first year. Erin laughed along with him at the memory.

“I wasn’t used to waking up so early yet!” she narrated, making hand gestures in the wind, a bagel in one hand. “And before I knew it, I was the only one left at the dormitory. Nobody bothered to wake me up!” she paused suddenly, pouting as she tore at her bagel. “Well, I _think_ they did before giving up on me?”

Albus laughed even more, his stomach began to ache.

“Y-You’re impossible sometimes.” He said breathlessly.

“Is that a bad thing?”

Shaking his head, he assured with a smile. “A bit of impossible is good now and then.” Then he takes a sip from the goblet, they had to share it. He flushed at the idea, handing the goblet to her.

“By the way, aren’t you going to Hogsmeade?” she asked, taking the goblet from him.

“Was about to but decided not to.”

“Why?” she asked, after drinking from the goblet.

There was a milk-stache on her upper lip, causing him to laugh. She raised a brow in question. Albus made a gesture of circling on his upper lip. It took her a while to get it before wiping the milk with her sleeve. The goblet was near empty now, and she gave the remaining milk to him.

“I decided I didn’t want to go.” He said, staring at the white substance.

“Why did you decide not to go?”

He shrugged, lifting the goblet to his lips.

“Albus, why?” she whined when he didn’t answer.

“Why _don’t_ you go to Hogsmeade?”

She stared at him for some time, the way she stared sort of unnerved him. Those purple eyes looked like they were looking into his soul. Erin shrugged; a smile played on her lips.

“Really?” he cried in disbelief.

She smiled, showing her pearly white teeth.

“Yeah.”

They returned the goblet to the kitchen elf when its contents were empty, Ikki quick to take them away. The two teens quietly left the kitchen, walking along the quiet halls.

“So, where to now?” Albus asked.

“Hmm,” she thought, tapping her fingers against her chin. “Oh, good morning Nearly Headless Nick!” she greeted at the passing ghost.

“Good morning to you too Miss Alisdair, Mister Potter~” the ghost greeted jovially.

“Sir Nicholas,” Albus greeted back.

The ghost looked them inquisitively, playing with his moustache.

“And where are you two off to this fine Saturday morning?” he asked curiously. “Off to a date, I presume?” he asked cheekily. “Ah, the youth, always in a rush.”

That made Albus flush madly. _Was it really?_

“U-Uh...”

Beside him, Erin tilted her head in question. “Huh?”

“Ah, such an oblivious lass.” Teased the ghost.

“Am not!” she protested; cheeks puffed.

 _Are too._ He said in his head, enjoying the sight of her.

“Oho! Quite the spirit there, child!”

Erin couldn’t stay mad, he noticed, a smile crawled its way to her lips.

“Goodness, I seem to be stalling your time! Apologies children, run along now!”

Albus was still blushing, judging from his tone, he was still under the impression that they were dating. For Merlin’s sake, they were thirteen!

“...to the owlery.”

“Huh?” He turned to her in confusion.

“You asked where to, and I said owlery.” She said simply.

“You’re going to write a letter back? So fast?”

She giggled. “No, silly! I’m actually going to write back there.” She said in a ‘duh’ tone. “That way, I can deliver my messages fast.”

On their way to the owlery though, they practically ran into a group of Ravenclaws, in matching robes and broomsticks. Not far from them – for they were running behind, were Lorcan and Lysander. No mistaking their moppy strawberry blond hair. They haven’t seen them much lately.

“Al, Erin!” It was Lysander who noticed them with a huge grin, but it was Lorcan who ran up to them.

“Scamander twins get back here!” called Simon Crow, a seventh year.

“We’ll just follow cap’n!” the twins cried in unison, causing the group to laugh.

“No, get back here, we have to be training! The finals are on the line here!”

“Finals?” Erin asked in question.

“Quidditch finals.” Albus explained to her.

Her face scrunched up, tilting a bit.

“Blimey, Cap’n’s really into winning, eh?” said Lorcan, or Lysander. Three years and he still can’t tell the twins apart, even when one of them has their hair tied up.

“Well, we _did_ beat Slytherin last season. And according to our points, we might actually win the House Cup!” jeered Lysander, or Lorcan, burying Erin into his chest. Albus was rather irritated whenever they did that.

“Oi, five minutes you two.” Laughed Timothy Greenfield, he recognized him to be one of Scott’s friends.

“So, this is why we never see you two around lately,” The young wizard said to his friends, noticing the band-aid in Lorcan or Lysander’s cheek. “Accident?” he gestured at the band-aid.

“Attempted to fly over the Whomping Willow without it crushing me.” Lorcan, or Lysander, said with a sigh.

“He obviously failed.” Lysander, or Lorcan, said with a laugh.

Erin gasped, slapping Lorcan, or Lysander, by the arm. “Don’t do that!”

They laughed. “Calm down Erin!”

“Yeah, see? Just a scratch.” Lysander, or Lorcan, showed his cheek to her.

“More like, what’s left of it.” Retorted the other twin.

“Shh!”

“Lorcan, Lysander,” she said in a warning tone, it was actually the first time he heard that tone. However, it sounded rather comical, especially when she sounded like a scolding mother and that she was shorter than both of them.

“SCAMANDER TWINS!”

“Whoops, there goes our captain.” Lorcan, or Lysander, said.

“Duty calls!” Lysander, or Lorcan, releases Erin from his hold.

“See you!”

Out of habit, the twins kissed either side of Erin’s cheeks before scurrying off to their maddening captain. The two watched them leave – Erin clutching unto her bag with her cheeks puffed up angrily and Albus feeling an awful twitch at their kiss.

“Albus,” he heard her call. He turned to her; twitch magically gone. “What’s Quidditch?”

Shocked corrupted his face at her question, along with the questioning look on her face.

“A-Are you serious?” he asked as they started to move along.

She nodded twice, her whole face set on question and confusion.

“You’ve been here for three years and not once, have you heard of Quidditch?”

She shook her head innocently.

He was about to ask where she has been all these years, but he probably already guessed that she was busy caring for Marlowe, and other magical creatures while working for Hagrid.

He tried to explain to her when they reached the owlery, what he knew about Quidditch. He also shared that his older brother was playing for their house as the Seeker, the twins were Chaser and Keeper, respectively, and that even Scorpius was a Seeker.

The look on her face showed that she was getting just a tiny bit of what he told her. For a Ravenclaw, she such information seemed rather underwhelming for her.

“You know what?” his voice rose against the hoots and flutters from the owls, and the howls of the wind. “I think its best I show you.”

…

A week later, they were at the pitch waiting for the Ravenclaw and Slytherin match to begin.

She sat with the Gryffindors because she was to learn everything there is to know about Quidditch from his family, who very much loved the game. After all, his mom was an ex-player for the Holyhead Harpies, and James was the Seeker for their house and was a Quidditch enthusiast.

And it wasn’t weird to have a Ravenclaw and a Slytherin at the Gryffindor stands at all.

Erin stared incredulously at her surroundings, fascinated – but more confused, with everything. Almost resembling a lost child or a fish out of water.

Astley, whom he knew sometime was not into sports, stared patiently at the pitch. She brought a book with her to keep her occupied once the match begins. (‘ _Sports bore me.’_ ) She was there for Erin’s sake.

Everything had been too much for Erin to take in; she didn’t even try to hide it. The cheers were confusing, the stands, the basics of the game, the hoops, the scoring system and even the Quaffle (she said ‘Waffle’ the first time, and it had taken five tries from James to convince her that it was a ‘Quaffle’ a ball Chasers used to pass around. Which then, earned her another explanation of Chasers.)

Thankfully, there was his family as back-up to fill Erin in.

“So, this is your first time in a Quidditch match?” Fred questioned her; half of his face painted with red to show his support to their house, even though they weren’t playing.

She nodded, inching closer to Astley in discomfort.

“Yes, this is her first time in a Quidditch match Frederick.” Said Astley, her voice cool and collected, as she turned to him. Fred shrunk under her gaze.

“Really?” Rose cried in surprise. “Haven’t you questioned why we had Flying classes in first year?”

“I always thought it was because it was an alternative form of transportation next to cars and dragons.” Erin replied innocently.

Fred and James snickered.

“D-Dragons?” questioned Hugo, gulping down nervously.

“Dragons!” Erin said enthusiastically.

“Her grandfather works as a magizoologist, and she gets a lot of exposure of magical creatures in her home,” Astley explained, noticing that Erin’s scarf was slipping off, so she tended to it quickly.

Albus wondered if Astley knew about Marlowe, her hippogriff. So, he asked, in a whisper, Erin.

“Of course, she does! She’s my best friend! We don’t keep secrets from each other.”

“I just wouldn’t dare fly her though,” Astley muses. “I’m terrified of heights.”

Erin giggles. “But Marlowe likes you.”

Astley smiles, playing with the cover of her book. “The feeling is mutual.”

Before long, the match soon begins. When the cheers began, Erin terribly felt out of place and overwhelmed that she covered her ears. They laughed at that.

The student announcer’s voice began to boom from the speakers, filling the pitch with wild cheers. Erin shrunk in her seat. Slowly, he began to call out the members of either team. The only time Erin clapped along was when he mentioned ‘Malfoy’ and ‘Scamander twins’. She was like a happy seal, clapping away.

“Such a supportive friend.” Roxanne laughed.

“You have no idea.” Astley said in agreement, laughing quietly in her seat.

With the players flying around, slowly getting to the place, the pitch quieted down as Madame Hooch walked down the grounds.

“I heard Malfoy was a reserve since his first year,” they heard Fred remark to James, who was eyeing the pitch. “And that their captain has been eyeing him since.”

“That sounds creepy.” Says Rose, beside her, Hugo nods in agreement.

“Why is Madame Hooch there?” asked Erin, who was holding unto her knees.

“She’s the referee,” Albus tells her, watching as the said professor walked until she stood in the middle of the pitch. With her hawk eye-like eyes, she eyed each player sternly, an eerie silence filling.

“Now I want a clean game,” her voice boomed, eyeing the players on the field “from all of you.”

She then kicked the crate, releasing two bludgers and the golden snitch – when Erin asked what they were for, Albus was momentarily tongue-tied. Thankfully, James kindly filled her on what they were and what they do.

The quaffle was then thrown into the air, and the game began.

“Oh, so that’s a waffle.” Erin said in awe.

Everyone burst into fits of laughter, James, again, telling her that it was a ‘quaffle’, not a ‘waffle’.

The match had been intense, at least in the eyes of Erin, who cringed in worry when Lorcan, or Lysander, batted a bludger out of the way, barely hitting Scorpius – who was in the way, and when Lysander, or Lorcan, had to protect their hoop. She never got the hang of it, having covered her eyes every time a bludger flew her friends’ way, the passing of quaffles (after six tries) made her dizzy.

Beside her, Astley was indulging into her book to care about the match, the noise unfazed her as she turned a page.

It was nearly two hours, and the crowd was getting antsy. The golden snitch was yet to make it appearance.

“Golden snitch?” Erin queried; eyes wide. “that adorable tiny golden thing with wings that moved as fast as the wind?”

“Yeah?” said Fred, on the edge of his seat, eyes looking everywhere.

“You mean this one?” she opened her palm, presenting the snitch sitting comfortably in her hand.

Curious at the silence from the Weasley and Potters, Astley put her book down and glanced at the golden thing.

“Erin!” the family cried in frustration, much to her confusion.

Slowly, the snitch came to life and began to fly. Except that, none of the players have noticed that it was in front of Erin.

It danced in front of her, making her giggle. The anxiety from the family soon faded, bursting into another laughing fit. Even Astley joined along!

“The golden snitch has been found!” the student announcer announced, cutting their entertainment short.

“Erin,” a voice called, awfully familiar. “duck!”

A flutter of her house colors and Astley’s flashed before her eyes, she was too late to notice that the two Seekers were flying her way. Albus was just about to call out to her, but it was too late.

Without warning, someone knocked Erin down to the wooden floor, effectively dodging the two Seekers who barely caught the snitch.

“That was close!” said the student announcer. “looks like Malfoy and Clarke were about to knock a poor student!”

“Erin!” he stood from his seat, Astley and few of his family following after him. Some nosy students even followed, they sat near them after all.

“Erin?” came Astley’s voice in worry.

“I’ve got her,” said her savior, the long braid was familiar, groaning a bit. “I’ve got her.”

He cradled Erin against his chest as he awkwardly sat up from the floor. “Ow...”

“Scott?” Astley said in confusion.

Usually, when Astley addressed Scott, he’d respond to her straightaway. But her voice fell on deaf ears as he turned to his sister, glaring in annoyance.

“Don’t do that again,” he said sternly. “no matter how pretty they look.”

“Scott!” Erin chided at her brother.

He heard someone groan, followed by what he was sure sounded like someone doing a face palm.

“Erin!” Scott said exasperatedly, holding unto her shoulders. “Don’t. Do. That. Again. _Alright_?”

Erin nodded; a tiny grateful smile graced her lips. Scott sighed, smiling, nonetheless. He ruffled her hair before slowly getting up. Noticing the crowd, he nonchalantly clapped his hands.

“Alright, nothing to see here folks! Looks like Slytherin won.”

True enough, the Slytherin team _had_ won.

“What are you two doing here anyway?” he heard Scott asked Erin and Astley. “I know for a fact that Astley isn’t interested in Quidditch, _in the least_ \- “to which, said girl playfully rolls her eyes. “and you,” he pointed at his sister. “who can’t even tell a quaffle from a waffle.”

“That’s true.” James joined in, earning an offended ‘hey’ from Erin.

Coming to Erin’s defense, Albus explained to Scott that she was curious about Quidditch, so he thought he’d show her via this week’s match (even when James and Fred did all the explaining). Scott looked rather crossed at him, he could tell by the look in his eyes. Albus gulped.

“So that was Quidditch.” Erin said in awe, her mouth forming into a tiny ‘o’.

“And?” Albus asked, unaware of his crazed, nosy (and Quidditch-loving) family leaning in.

“It’s rather mad.” She said, with an utmost look of concern on her face.

That caused them to be in another laughing fit. Really, Erin could be really too much of innocent sometimes.

When James announced that Gryffindor took on Hufflepuff in the next match, he asked Erin if she’d like to watch. Surprisingly, she agreed. Just as long as someone would explain to her why they don’t mix in dragons and other winged creatures into the fray.

“Oh, I almost forgot!” Erin said suddenly, when it was just, she, Astley, him and Scott, walking back to the castle. The two looked at her in question. “Hey Scott,” she turned to her brother, who raised his brow in question. “don’t you think daddy’ll be happy when he learns I watched my first Quidditch match today?”

Something soft crosses her brother’s gray eyes. “Oh, that does sound like a good idea.” Says the older sibling as he fixes Erin’s scarf.

“YAY!” she cheers, throwing her hands in the air. “I can’t wait to tell him!”

Albus and Astley glanced at each other, exchanging smiles. She really was such a daddy’s girl.

…

It was morning of February when things took for a rather, unexpected turn of events.

It was a day where things undoubtedly went for the worst.

It was the day he would never forget.

It had been during breakfast, if he could perfectly remember, Erin was at the Slytherin table and was busy braiding Astley's hair, while conversing with Scorpius Malfoy, debating on something trivial with Erin clearly winning. Beside them sat the twins, trying to make a waffle house.

Albus was running late that morning, making him miss the events that soon transpired.

Per usual, loud screeches sounded the arrival of morning posts and deliveries, momentarily cutting their debate short. It was a flutter of owls in different shapes, sizes and colors, truly a morning sight. A newspaper dropped before Scorpius, he took it and immersed himself. The twins were unfazed by it all, as they were putting the final touches to their waffle house.

When the last of the owls were gone, it was then that their waffle house was finished. Lorcan and Lysander jumped for joy, earning stares from everyone in the Great Hall.

The twins then offered them their waffle house, Erin – who was finished with Astley's intricate braid that held half of her hair up – first, praised the twins for their fine work, then excitedly took a fork and carefully ate a piece. She moaned in delight at the symphony of flavors bursting in her mouth. Lysander proudly shared that they used strawberry jam and cream cheese as the house's 'cement', and toothpicks, to keep it standing.

Astley indulged after, grading their masterpiece an 8/10. Scorpius, however reluctant, ate a piece and didn't say another word, much to the twins' annoyance. Erin and Astley laughed.

Suddenly, a rainbow-colored bird appeared, cawing loudly as it flew towards a particular table. It left as soon as it came, before dropping a letter in front of them.

It was addressed specifically to both Scott and Erin Alisdair, and the sender was their grandfather.

Upon seeing whom the letter was from, the smile on her face widened. She _was_ expecting a letter from her father, but he was probably busy. A message from their grandfather could only mean that the old man probably had to beat their father just to respond to his children's letters. Their grandfather's letters were always the funniest.

Kneeling on the bench, she craned her head up towards the Ravenclaw table, looking for her older brother. Once spotted, she met his gaze and frantically waved their grandfather's letter.

Scott nodded, excusing himself from his friends, before heading towards her, quickly greeting them all before sitting next to his sister.

Tearing the letter open, the siblings read the letter together.

The excited look on their faces had slowly vanished, tainting with shock and pain. Erin's hands, that had been holding the letter, shook.

Scott looked grim, his jaw tightening. Surprised at his reaction, Astley turned to her best friend worriedly. "Erin?"

When she was finished reading, a lone tear streaked down her face, landing on the letter with a smack. The sight of this caused her brother to worry, his body relaxed, but still he looked grim.

Scorpius dropped the newspaper he was reading, sensing the tone when Astley called on their friend. The twins turned to the siblings with worry, particularly at Erin.

The Great Hall was loud, too loud to understand the situation going on their table.

"Erin?" Lorcan called out worriedly.

Coming to, she let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"I-I…uh…" desperately wiping the tears with her hand, she met her brother's gaze, folding the letter away before handing it to him.

"Erin?" Astley called again, very much worried now.

She spared her best friend a glance, before turning to her brother. "I-I, uh, I'm just…gonna…have to…"

Sighing, the older gave her a nod and allowed Erin to walk away.

She all but refused to meet anyone's gaze; even to look back had seemed impossible.

Astley tried to chase after her, but Scott stopped her, putting his hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, his lips pressed against each other tightly. She understood quickly but couldn't help but look at her best friend's retreating form.

Erin's breathing became labored, her chest felt heavy, her body going numb, a part of her felt like dying.

Before she knew it, a few rebellious tears had streaked poured down her face. Clamping a hand to her mouth, she kept her head low as she hurriedly fled the Great Hall.

She bumped into someone along the way but was in a hurry to notice who it was. She missed the concerned look he gave her, his voice calling out to her as she ran.

More and more tears spilled from her eyes, making her speed up even more.

Albus watched her retreating figure, his heart lurched painfully when he caught the look on Erin's face. He turned to his sister; her eyes shocked at what she just witnessed.

When he entered the Great Hall, he noticed that his friends were at the end of the Slytherin table looking grim. Without another word, he darted towards his friends, his sister following behind him.

The mood between them all read sadness, something that wasn't affiliated to their group. Scorpius, a man of chosen words and emotions, bowed his head with his interlaced fingers before him. The twins met Albus' gaze and gave a half-hearted smile. But it was Scott that shook him the most; he seemed dazed, lost. And the only one trying to break him off from that was Astley, who was talking to him softly.

"What happened?" he asked, announcing his presence.

Scott looked up weakly, what he saw in his eyes shocked him – they were the same pained eyes he saw earlier. The raven-haired lad reached for his pocket then handed it to Albus, who stared at it for a few seconds before taking the folded paper.

His eyes automatically flew open when he read its contents. His eyes then flew to the lad before him, this was something personal, and Scott clearly didn't like him much, but to hand something this personal was something.

"Do you know where she is?"

"By the Whomping Willow." Scott replied immediately, voice weak.

"Huh?" Lily looked in question.

"Don't worry, she'll be alright," Astley assured them, hands rubbing comfortingly on the older teen’s back. "Her ancestors planted that tree, and like recognizing an animagi, it recognizes its owner. So, it's harmless, really."

Scott let out a weary sigh, playing with the tip of his braid.

"If I were you," he motioned at Albus. "I'd give her some time alone. She needs this."

Bright eyes that were once so full of life, lighting up her whole face together with her vibrant smile, images of those were replaced with the image of her crying, so, so sad – Albus thought he’d never see her that sad in his life.

He could only nod, mind still plagued by Erin’s sadness.

…

Albus Potter did the one thing he thought he'd never do in his academic life – skip class.

And for good reason.

Just the sight of Erin in tears was enough to haunt him in his sleep, he couldn't live with that. Erin didn't deserve that kind of sadness. Lest be that she kept it to herself, it wasn't right. They were friends for a reason.

What Scott said earlier was weird. He caught the drift in his tone that told him otherwise – _Go after her. She needs someone._

He didn't understand why he'd entrust his sister to him all of a sudden.

As he slowly walked up the hill, the Whomping Willow was in view. He gulped at the sight of it. The magical tree was already threatening enough up close, and he worried that maybe what Scott said wasn't entirely true. What if Erin was swept away by the tree? Or what if she got stuck into its branches?

But _no_ , his thoughts proved an exaggeration for there she was – lying against the tree like a child, the tree just stood firm as if to anchor her pain.

Her shoulders heaved with every sob; he could see that as he came up close.

When he was close enough, he called her. "Erin?"

She gasped in shock, slowly peering over her shoulder. The look on her face nearly killed him.

Her face was puffy, cheek stained with tears and her eyes swollen red.

"A-Albus…" she croaked, unafraid to let her tears flow.

It was then that he realized that even the brightest break down sometimes.

She couldn't help it and threw herself at him, sobbing so loud that it tore him to pieces. He said nothing and just held her.

And so, he held her tight, tight enough for his warmth to reign over her now cold body. He just wished he could take her pain away, to shoulder it, just anything to remove any form of sadness. Because seeing her in this state, was heart-breaking.

He was always used to seeing Erin so bright, so bubbly and happy; sadness was such a foreign feeling to her. He has never seen her this sad.

No amount of comforting words can totally ease the loss she was experiencing.

She just lost her father, her only parent. She had lost her mother when she was younger, and now her father. He may not know the feeling of losing someone close to your heart, but he did know how much it broke Erin.

Erin cried for hours.

Thankfully, Albus was there for her, giving her the comfort, he could give and his presence. To make her realize that she was not alone in this. (He can't imagine how Scott's holding up right now)

According to Erin, her father had been battling a long-term sickness. And today, he lost the battle. Just hearing her words pained him, having met the man a times before, he looked so healthy and strong! However, he couldn’t imagine the pain he was going through.

Though she was young, Erin could still remember the pain of losing her mother. The pain came back for her; it seemed, remembering to break her from the inside out.

They were sitting against the tree, watching the forest below them stretching out for miles. He had his arm around her, as a form of comfort. She was quietly crying beside him.

"Are you going to be alright?" he asked after a while.

Wiping the tears with her fingers, she shook her head. "I don't think so," her voice was earnest, sad. "it's just..." she took in a deep breath. "Scott and I didn't expect this to happen. We were always reminding him what to eat, what _not_ to eat, what he can do, and what he _can't_ do. He was so strong when we left him after Christmas break. And now, just-"she shook her head as her lips trembled again.

"Shh," he tightened his hold around her. "it's going to be alright. I promise you."

She cried against his shoulder, whimpering. "At least his suffering ended." She sniffled. "At least he gets to be with mommy now."

"Now there's a good thought." He pulled back, pulling a smile on his face. Erin tried to smile back, the effort to do so made his heartbreak. He began to ask her about the Whomping Willow, and how her ancestors planted the tree.

In a way, Erin began to smile, grateful for the distraction as she began to explain.

Albus thanked his curiosity, lightening the mood between the two.

She coughed. "You seem parched." Said Albus as he started to get on his feet.

"Come on," he tugged her hand. "I'll walk you back to the castle. Looks like you need a drink."

She manages another smile, albeit a small one. "Thank you, Albus."

The walk back to the castle was a quiet one, the only sounds they made were the crunches beneath their feet, the gentle breeze, the birds above them. He had her hands in his, Erin's small hands in his slightly large ones, guiding, comforting.

When they arrived at the castle, they were surprised to find the Headmistress waiting for them. They stopped a few feet before her, slightly terrified of her mere presence. But when she fixed her soft gaze at Erin, she opened her arms and walked up to them. "Oh, my dear child." Stunned by the hug, she was unaware of the tears starting anew.

"Erin..."

When he looked, she found their friends. Hagrid was there as well, along with his family. They were all grieving for the Alisdair siblings.

She couldn't help it, she ran towards Scott's waiting arms and cried some more.

She cried against her brother's shoulders, Astley soon joined in, grieving for her best friend. Scorpius and the Scamander twins could only bow their heads at Erin's sobs. He met Scott's gaze; the older lad nodded. Albus tried a smile.

The two were reprimanded for missing classes and were given detention, but because there was a reason, it was a light detention.

It had been two weeks since, and Albus wondered how Erin was now.

She had missed the Gryffindor match against Hufflepuff, much to the chagrin of James and the rest of the family. But given her current situation, they understood her.

Last he heard, she and Scott were sent home for their father's funeral. He heard she couldn't stop crying, and that even some of their magical creatures mourned with her.

Just as he was about to a corner, intending to head to the library, a voice called behind him.

"Ginger, there you are!"

He stopped, remembering the owner of that voice. However, before he could turn to see, something furry and warm was lifted off his head.

"You shouldn't run off like that," she reprimanded, the grey feline meowed. "especially when you're about to take your bath- Oh, hallo, Albus!"

Fully turning to her, he was in for a shock. Erin's hair was shorter now, shoulder-length. But it suited her just fine, she looked much more child-like like.

"Erin! Welcome back!"

She giggled, holding Ginger closer.

"It's good to be back, Albus." Of course, of all his friends, she's the only one who calls him by his full name. But he liked it coming out of her mouth.

"I see you've cut your hair."

"Yeah," she said sadly. "it's a phase."

She didn't say more, but he understands.

"Does she have fleas?" he referred to Ginger as they walked along the corridors.

"Fleas? Ha! Nope." She popped at the 'p'. "I bet Astley makes sure she doesn't get them. Ginger smells too much of cinnamon to have fleas."

"Now that you mention it, now I know the culprit behind the lingering cinnamon in my hair."

Erin laughed like always, with her eyes bright and her cheeks flushed. It may seem like she hadn't lost someone a few weeks ago, but she was trying.

She was a strong girl. And he’ll be there to support her.

"Say, Erin…" he called at the now short-haired lass, cradling the feline in her arms.

"Hmm?"

"W-Would, would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me?" That was rather blunt, but there it came. He could imagine James and Fred at the scene, under the cloak and all, laughing their heads off.

Erin giggles, walking backward to meet his gaze. "Like a date?" they were nearing the doors now.

He gulps nervously. "Uh, yes, like a date." Realizing his words, Albus opened his mouth and sputtered, "A f-friendly date!"

It was a relief to see her smile, it was like a rainbow after the rain.

She giggles again, oblivious to his tone, before gladly taking his offer.


	8. Fourth Year: Running Into You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Fourth Year: Running Into You]_ **

Albus was fixated by the pieces before him, conjuring a strategy in the process. In front of him, the man smiled connivingly, seemingly enthused by the young challenger before him.

It took a while for Albus to take action, having stared too long at the pieces. He had built unlikely tension already, with a flock of curious locals peering over their little game. But Albus was too into the game to notice.

Finally, for what seemed like forever, Albus made his move.

“Checkmate.” He said, leaning into his seat smiling.

Before him, the man’s smile wiped off his face, he did a double at the pieces, disbelieving. The crowd all gasped in awe. And not long was he ambushed by his siblings, who had been watching from the side.

“Brilliantly played.” Said James, ruffling his hair.

“I didn’t doubt for a bit that you’d win!” Lily says enthusiastically.

He managed a smile. “It’s just chess.”

“Muggle chess, at that.” James pointed out; his voice low.

“It’s still the same, either way.” Albus shrugged.

Earlier, he was just passing by when his attention was on two old men playing. Intrigued, he fell in and watched before he was invited to play. They were twins, he found out later, who absolutely and positively delighted in chess whenever they can. The oldest twin, whom he was playing against, shook his hand warmly before the siblings left the park.

“Anyway, where to next?” the youngest Potter asked, dragging both her brothers by the hand. And they let her.

“Well, we could see-” Albus was abruptly cut off when a blur of blue walked by him, immediately his nose picked up on expensive perfumes that nearly made him choke.

“Whoa now,” whistled James, watching them go. “That’s a lot of students.”

“Where are they from?” Lily asked curiously, the blue coats unfamiliar to her, watching them cross the road.

“Beauxbatons.” James said, with a little shiver.

“I take, you’re not a fan of them?”

“Eugh, no. They’re sissies.”

“That wasn’t nice,” Lily said with a frown.

“What? They are!” James sputtered. “Probably filled with rich, pampered, and snobby wizards and witches all around the world.”

“You’re just saying that.” Lily said, folding her arms. Beside her, Albus snickered quietly under his breath. If only she knew. But James was overgeneralizing.

“It’s not their fault most aristocrats would choose that school over Hogwarts. It is, after all, a school of sophistication.” Albus calmly explained.

“Well, if it’s so _sophisticated_ as you say it is, how come Astley doesn’t go there?” argued James.

His statement got him thinking. Astley could pass up for Beauxbatons. And didn’t Erin mention once that she belonged to a well-off family and was almost sent there?

“So, you’re saying that Slytherins aren’t sophisticated then?” he argued back.

James frowned at that, choosing not to say anything. Both Albus and Lily laughed at that. Really, he will never let go of his loss from a Slytherin. Arguably, both Slytherin and Beauxbatons screamed elitists, but Slytherin just seems like the one for a tough crowd.

At the mention of Astley, he can’t help but think of her best friend (and his friend, because he cannot claim her being _his_ best friend) – Erin Alisdair. After the events of last year, he wondered how she was doing now. The last time he saw her, she had cut her hair and looked a little better. It was safe to say that she was trying, under the stage of recovery. He hoped that the next time he saw her; she’d be a lot better now. He kind of missed her.

“Albus?” came a soft, familiar voice.

_Merlin’s pants. Did he just conjure her?_

He stiffened at that. He’d know that voice anywhere.

Looking over his shoulder, he found Erin.

But she seemed different. No, she _looked_ different – half of her hair was short, while the other half was long and purple. _Purple_ , just like her eyes, only lighter. And what she wore was something far from her usual drabby fashion – a white corset-like top, high-waist pink skirt, a denim jacket, and what seems to be a brand new pair of white sneakers. He couldn’t make out her hairstyle, as it was braided over her forehead like a headband. But either way, she looked pretty. Scratch that, she looked _beautiful_.

“E-Erin?”

“Hi there!” she smiled that smile of hers, skipping towards them. Yep, definitely Erin.

“W-What are you doing here?” he blurted, flushing, unable to take his eyes off her.

“Oh, just running some errands before I head off to Astley’s. They invited me over for some tea. She lives around here, you know. Oh, and Scorpius too!”

Up close, she smelled like roses.

“You look so pretty,” Lily comments with a smile.

“Thanks,” she smooths with the ends of her hair. “it’s all Astley’s half-sisters’ work, they go to Beauxbatons.”

“Ah, that explains it.” Grumbles James, making Erin giggle.

“Well, it was nice running into you guys. I guess I’ll be seeing you around?”

“Yeah, see you.” James says, waving at her, as did Lily.

Albus, however, was stuck on his spot, disbelieving what just happened. He just froze, watching her figure disappear into the crowd. How he wanted her to stay longer.

Feeling his siblings stare on him, immediately, he glared their way only to receive snickers from them. Really, his siblings, always the conniving lot.

 _At least you got to see her,_ he thought.

…

He hadn’t expected things to end up like this.

After they met with Erin, the siblings were left to wander around the city. They got into a museum, got to see a magic show (which Albus could tell was a mere optical illusion), ate at some muggle restaurant, and bought a few things.

They were about to leave when James caught sight of Erin, skipping down the road.

Albus once again found himself freezing at the sight of her – her eyes were alive and bright, her cheeks flushed, her purple-colored hair dancing in the wind. She was a sight to behold. This was proven by the heads that turned her way when she passed. He wondered where she was going.

“Want to follow her?” suggested James.

Baffled, Albus adamantly said no, already making his way out. But his siblings either didn’t listen, or had their meddlesome nature kick in.

Which brings us to their current situation – they were following her around.

“This is a bad idea!” he whispered angrily at them.

“Says the lad who went along anyway instead of going home.” Lily snickered under her breath. Not long after, James joins in.

Albus flustered, unable to say anything in turn but go along with them. As much as this was a bad idea, and near the invasion of Erin’s privacy, he can’t help but be curious. And besides, they were looking after her!

Over the last few minutes of following her, they ended up in the strangest of places – a trinket shop, a secondhand store, a pet shop. Of course, he knew Erin’s child-like fascination, hence her interest in such places. However, she always left empty-handed, satisfied with every stop.

“Does Erin get out of the muggle world much?” James asked him after their fourth stop.

“How should I know?” Albus asked with a frown, despite being friends for three years, he still doesn’t know Erin _that_ much.

His brother narrowed his eyes at him, smirking a little. “Aren’t you two close?”

Not liking the tone of his voice, Albus cried, “J-James!”

And then something crashed behind them – probably a cat.

When Erin turned, the siblings had toppled to the ground just to hide themselves, all three groaning in pain.

“Well, that was stupid.” Lily says, struggling to stand.

“I know,” James agreed, helping his sister stand.

“Might I remind you whose brilliant idea this was?” Albus huffed angrily, a bit loudly.

“Albus?”

He froze right on the spot, his siblings, James especially, snickered. He whipped his head to see that Erin was just a few feet in front of them, her expression at its usual look of awe.

Panicking, he turned to his siblings, only to find that they were gone.

“Lily? James?” he whispered.

There was nothing but the sound of a bustling road behind Erin. He thought he was completely talking to the wind when, “Good luck!” Lily and James said in unison, and then he heard footsteps.

 _So, they brought the cloak with them. Fantastic._ He thought ironically.

“Albus? Is that you?” Erin called again, sounding closer.

Taking a deep breath, he turned on his heel, straightening up a bit, before revealing himself. “Yeah, it’s me.”

She gave him a look, brows knitting together, tilting her head to the side. “Have you been following me?”

“No!” he says almost immediately, his face practically beet red.

Humorously, she raises a brow at him, fighting a grin on her face, as if disbelieving him.

“Yes.” He surrenders with a sigh.

She giggles, his face only burns ups more. This was embarrassing. This was all James’ fault (when it was his, really). He should’ve gone home. What a delight.

Recovering from her giggling fit, she grins so wide that her teeth showed, and then she reaches out a hand to him, “Come here.”

Hesitantly, he reached and held her hand, never getting used to how soft it was and how it made the butterflies in his belly run amok.

She led him out of the alley and out to the open – where was she taking her, he did not know.

But after a while, he was met by wild colors and laughter.

“T-The carnival?”

“Mm-hmm,” she hums, looking at the face with childish glee. “I heard that there was one and I just had to come see. I’ve never been to one before.”

Well, that answers James’ question – no, she’s not out on the muggle world much. Which should be obvious, having spent all her time with her dragons and other mythical creatures.

“Would you like to come with me?”

The question caught him off guard. He turned to her, an expectant smile on her face. The butterflies in his belly hurt.

“S-Sure…” Just who was he to deny her?

…

Erin was practically dancing the moment they got in, acting like child on her first time (when it was) as she danced from booth to booth, marveling at what they had to offer. She seemed to be enjoying her time, if that earsplitting grin on her face isn’t obvious enough.

They had tried out a few games, of which, out of the five they’ve played, won just one. He managed to get her a stuffed unicorn.

“Funny that the muggles think that unicorns have rainbow hair.” She laughed, hugging her stuffed toy tight. “Thanks again for this Albus!”

He felt his cheeks grow hot but tried to act nonchalant. “N-No problem…”

When she pointed at the carousel, wanting to ride it, he couldn’t refuse her. (Thank Merlin he has some spare money with him) Her childlike frenzy was a sight to see. She was really having a great time.

“So, why’re you out here on your own, if you don’t mind me asking?” he asked moments later, vanilla shake in front of him.

Swallowing down her popcorn, Erin leaned back on her seat, her eyes on the sky. “Hmm, because I just want to?” And then she giggled. “Can’t I have a day to myself?”

“Does Scott know you’re out here on your own?”

“Scott only knows that I went to Astley’s.” she says with a shrug of her shoulders. Leaning forward, she puffs out her cheeks in thought. Albus can’t help but find this cute. Her eyes fell to him, catching him off guard, staring at him straight in the eye, her grin grows. “But this happened unexpectedly. So, I expect that you don’t tell Scott I went out on my own, okay?” leaning back on her seat, she lifts both thumbs up.

He sighs dreamily, lifting his thumbs.

Right after they had their snack, Erin practically dragged him around. They walked with the flow, Erin talking once in a while when they came across something interesting (at least in her eyes). He couldn’t help but laugh. Trust Erin to make observations just like a child, speaking with so much wonder.

Every once in a while, he noticed people staring at them with smiles on their faces, they must think that they were on a date. His face was red as a tomato at the thought.

They made their last stop at the Ferris wheel. Erin was practically jumping in excitement as they neared a cable car.

“Oh! We’re up so high Albus!” she squealed, throwing her hands in the air. “You can see everything from here!”

He chuckled. “Better be careful now, you might fall off.” He reminds her, hands gripping the handlebars.

That made her laugh. “You sound like Astley every time I’d climb a tree or be on the rooftop!”

Albus shook his head as he doubled in laughter; really, she was such an impossible lass.

When they reached the highest point, Erin suddenly closed her eyes, smiling. The wind wisped through her face, her hair blowing behind her. Time felt like it stopped.

Suddenly, he felt a soft, warm hand on his – it was Erin’s. Unconsciously, he took her hand in his. And when she squeezed her hand, he felt his heart tug.

…

“That was fun,” he regarded, looking down at the happy girl.

“Thanks for coming with me, Albus!”

“No, thank _you_ for letting me tag along. Thank _you_ for today.”

She hums, never letting go of their intertwined hands.

“Well, I guess I should be going now.” He says sadly, noticing how the skies were getting dark.

Just before he lets go of their hands, she does the unthinkable. She tugs him to her side, kissing him by the corner of his mouth. Her breath was hot against his cheek, the smell of roses, and an underlying smell of flowers and popcorn, drove his senses mad.

“Bye Albus.” And then she was gone.

He watched her leave, stared at the alley when she completely disappeared. He lifted his hand, touching the area she had kissed. He could still feel her lips on them.

Out of nowhere, he felt an arm slinging over his shoulders.

“So….” Lily, popping from the cloak, asked expectantly, practically jumping up and down in excitement. “how did it go?”

Albus tried his hardest to act nonchalant like it was nothing. But the flush on his cheeks gave that away.

“It went well, I reckon?” James asked with a smirk.

Red as a beet, he huffed and announced that they had to get home. His two siblings exchanged a look before laughing at themselves, running after their red-faced brother.

Albus couldn’t help the silly grin on his face.

He hadn’t realized that he had snagged a date with Erin, or rather, he hadn’t realized that _she_ snagged him out on a date.

**..**

A few months later, and he was back at school.

Albus wondered if the Erin he saw last summer was a figment of his imagination. He hoped not. And he hasn’t even seen her all day!

Maybe he needed to consult the friendly campus giant, Hagrid. He may not understand teenage dilemma, but he sure knows how to start a good day.

Just as he was going down the hill, something flew over his head.

He jumped in shock, looking up at the bird flying over him. What’s weird was the bird was white, _like snow._

Curiously, he followed after it.

He ran towards the forest, seeing the bird above. He could hear it cawing, its majestic wings flapping against the wind. It began to descend.

His eyes followed its descent, making him miss the person in front of him, whom he crashed into.

“Oh, I’m sorr-“

“Albus!”

Peering up, he found Erin. And this was the same Erin from last summer.

The Erin that seemed and looked different, the good kind of different – one part of her hair was still shoulder length and black, while the other was longer and dyed light purple.

“Erin!” he says back with equal favor, much to her delight. His eyes trailing back to her hair, still in awe of the change.

“D’you like it?” she asked excitedly, leaning in closer for him to get a better look. Oblivious to the proximity, Albus discreetly backed away while fighting the blush on his face. He prayed that she wouldn’t notice.

“It’s so you, Erin.” He said with a polite smile, wrapping his coat around him. Boy, was it cold out here. “You look like a pixie-Snow White now.”

Erin laughed, her eyes disappearing. “That’s an interesting combination. When we were first year you said I was Snow White, now, I’m pixie-Snow White.”

Albus flushed, hadn’t intended for her to hear that. “W-Why-“he cleared his throat, gaining composure “why’re you here anyway?”

“Oh, right!” she quickly stood up, clapping her hands together. With her index finger, she signaled him to wait and took a tiny rod from her neck “Watch!” and then she blew, producing a screech.

There was a shrill call from behind him, he turned, finding the snow-white bird from earlier.

“Whoa,” he watched as the majestic white bird landed on her waiting arm. “what is _that_?”

“It’s a roc,” she said, petting its feathers. “it’s Scott’s pet. And it’s a she, by the way, she has a name. And her name is Safira.”

The white bird cawed at its name, nudging its head at Erin, making her laugh. “Scott asked me to look out for her while he settles some emergency Head Boy duties. Says I should let her exercise more since winter’s coming.” She explains, letting the bird rest on her shoulder.

Walking up to him, she wordlessly takes his hand, alarming him, and places assorted seeds on them. Though taken by surprise, he willingly helps feed the roc. Safira stares him down, eyes calculating and cold. However, she was soon eating off Albus’ hand.

“You sure have a lot of interesting creatures.” He commends, having enjoyed feeding Safira.

“Well, grandpa _is_ a magizoologist. And we _do_ get a firsthand view on the creatures- oh, you should see our house sometime! Our backyard is just _full_ of creatures!”

Yep, not much has changed of her. She was still her usual self – straightforward, naïve, optimistic, and strangely good. The only thing that’s ever changed of her was her physical features. She still donned that pixie Snow White appearnce, despite her new look. Her face had defined over the summer. And her sense of fashioned changed a bit too.

Nonetheless, she was still the Erin Alisdair he knew.


	9. Fourth Year: Thin Line

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Fourth Year: Thin Line]_ **

In his four years in Hogwarts, Albus can almost say that he’s been through a lot – past his awkward stage, growing up phase, and puberty. He can, without a doubt, testify that growing up was no easy feat.

Regardless, he’s had a pretty life so far. He has a great and school life, a great family, and a great set of friends. Plus, Albus was fourteen now. What more could possibly happen?

“Look out!” someone called, and before he could turn to look, something crashed over him. He groaned in pain, especially that they were in the courtyard, and his back painfully landed on a tree root.

“Ow,” he groaned again, back aching with pain.

“Albus!” says a rather familiar voice. “I’m so sorry!”

Peeking his eyes open, he finds, to his utmost embarrassment, Erin sitting on his stomach. Above him, snickers resounded from his brother and cousin. _Charming_.

Apparently, letting his crush land on him in school could happen.

Getting off him, she hurriedly sat on the grass while helping him up.

“Are you alright?” she asked, worriedly.

Her hair was down, he noticed. Purple-dyed hair draped over her shoulders, her short black hair framed her small face, making those translucent purple eyes pop. She was in uniform but was wearing her dread awful sneakers and striped socks. _Typical Erin._

“Albus?” she asked again, leaning in worriedly, even putting a hand on his forehead for good measure. He immediately flushed, both at their proximity and from the feel of her soft hands on his forehead.

He could still hear his brother and cousin snickering, again. “A-Ah, fine!” he yelled, shocking her and a few students passing by. “I’m fine, I’m fine.” He assures once more, composing himself, even though leaves fell off him when he ran a hand through his hair.

She sighed in relief, smiling apologetically. “Sorry about that. I was with the twins, and they were riding their broom around and asked if I could use a ride. I said yes, and, well…” she lifted her open palms, gesturing to their situation. “Speaking of the twins, where are they?” she lifted her head, looking for two strawberry blonds.

“I think they made a run for it,” remarked James with a smirk. “Old Finch was around the halls.”

True enough, the Squib was seen glaring at the students as he passed by. Fred couldn’t help but laugh at the grouchy old man.

Frowning, she asked. “Why, can’t you fly around the halls?”

Oh, Erin was so naïve.

“No, Erin.” Albus tells her, picking his bag from the ground. “Brooms are allowed solely for Quidditch or Flying classes.”

“Pissing shame.” Fred ‘tsked’.

“Language, Fred.” Albus said sternly.

That only caused his cousin to laugh. The ginger lad managed a glance at the raven and purple-haired lass, his smile was sly. Erin, in turn, tilted her head in question. Albus frowned at the expression.

“Anywho,” his brother announced, slinging an arm around his cousin’s shoulders. “Fred and I be best on our way now.”

“Huh?” he raised his brow in question.

He saw his brother roll his eyes playfully but kept his smirk on. “Me and Freddy are going to catch up on homework, yeah?”

Catching on quickly, Fred nods and the two immediately left the courtyard before Albus could say a word. It was then that he realized this to be a scheme for setting the two up, a blush threatening to spread.

“Are they twins?” he heard her ask when the two left the courtyard.

Shaking his head, he says, “No. He’s our cousin _and_ James’ best friend.”

“Oh! You come from a big family, right?”

He nods again, dusting the dirt off his robes. “Mostly from my mum’s side, they were a handful of siblings while dad was an only child. It’s a rather, mad family.”

Giggling, Erin looks up at him with a smile. “That sounds like a fun family. Scott and I don’t have cousins at all because both our parents were only child.”

“Yes, Scott did mention that.” He says quietly, averting his gaze.

A pungent smell of cinnamon and cookies suddenly infiltrated his nose, with thin fingers running through his hair. When he looked up, he wished he hadn’t – Erin was far too close, again. Up close, he could see her features well – thin lips, high cheekbones, sharp jawline, cute button nose. Really, she could be mistaken for a pixie.

Noticing his stare, she leaned back and smiled proudly at her work. “There, all done!”

She really was a pretty girl. She may not know it, but she makes head turn whenever she passes. No one can resist her innocent and pixie-like charms.

For a Ravenclaw, she sure was oblivious to it all. But thank Merlin for that.

“Oh, we must get going!” she said, realizing that they were the only ones left at the courtyard. She was on her feet in a blink of an eye, stretching her hand to him. “Let’s go?”

He stared at her hand for a bit, remembering the summer he held them, fighting the blush on his face (as if it were remotely possible). “Clearing” his throat, he met her smile with his before taking her hand.

…

A timeless tune was hummed as somewhere down the halls, someone was happily skipping with a wicker basket in hand. She made heads turn, leaving impressions both of bewilderedness and awe at her strange glee.

Eventually, she came to stop and greeted a random student while practically shoving a flower to their face. However perplexed the student was, he received the flower and muttered his thanks. The receiver – Erin, smiled, before doing the same to his other friends. When she was done, she happily skipped away in search for the next student.

This was actually quite normal for her.

Every year, Erin would hand out her favorite flowers – alyssum, to her favorite people. It was her little gesture showing her appreciation.

But just this year, she was giving them to everyone. She figured, everyone deserved her appreciating them for existing.

It’s no secret that Erin loves the holidays and spends it with everyone else, friends or not.

“Happy Valentine’s!” she greeted their professor before class started.

Bewildered, their professor takes the flower off Erin’s hands and returns her smile, albeit uncomfortably. Erin, however, doesn’t seem to notice and busies herself handing out more flowers to her classmates.

Somewhere, Albus and Scorpius struggled to keep in their laughter in their seats.

“She does this every year, but it never gets old.” Snickered Albus, eyes never leaving the black and purpled-haired girl.

“She never fails to amuse _us_ , you mean.” Scorpius snickered with him.

“Cheers, you two are amazing friends.” says Astley, sitting in front of them, laughing, nonetheless.

Just then, there was a commotion at the door, revealing the twins. They must’ve woken up late again, Albus thought as he watched them dart to their seats just behind his and Scorpius’.

“What’d we miss?” asked Lysander, wheezing.

“You just missed the expression on Professor Binn’s face.” Scorpius whispered as Erin neared her seat.

“Ah, really!?” shrieked Lorcan in his seat.

“See? Told ya t’was better we laid off last night with last minute studying!”

Thank god Albus could finally tell the two apart – Lorcan had a shaggy hair, while Lysander had a longer one which he keeps tied. Lorcan tends to keep his hair at bay with the help of hair clips, says it makes him look cool.

“Nu-uh! You dozed off immediately the moment we came to our rooms after Quidditch practice!” Lorcan says, fixing his bangs.

“I did not!” Lysander berates.

“Did too!”

“Both of you, shut up.” Astley tells them, instantly shutting the two up. She and Scorpius were the ones who could shut them up.

 _Must be the Slytherin in them, very intimidating._ He thought with a laugh.

Suddenly, a flower was shoved into his face, much to his surprise.

“Happy Valentine’s Albus!” Erin greeted, her smile was wide and bright.

“A-Ah, thanks.” He takes the flower from her, staring at the petals. In front of them, Professor Binn was telling Erin to finish up her flower delivery so he could start his class.

Giving the last flower to her best friend, Astley, Erin sat down grinning. Professor Binn took that as his cue to begin his lesson. Behind him, he could hear the twins beginning to doze off.

As Professor Binn went on with his discussion, and he was religiously listening, he felt something at the tip of his fingers. Looking down, he found the flowers Erin gave him earlier. They were tiny yet beautiful, making him wonder where Erin got them.

He smoothed his fingers through the petals, the purple reminding him of her dyed hair, he thought as he sneaked a glance at her – Erin was engrossed with the lesson but was also doodling in the process.

 _Valentine’s day_.

What could he give her?

And with the thought in mind, he had no idea how it will haunt him for the rest of the day.

…

Friday.

It just _had_ to be on a Friday. He was in a terrible luck, and it wasn’t even the thirteenth!

He stared at the flower on his book, pressed to preserve. The petals still in its vibrant purple, reminding him of her hair and her eyes.

As he seated with the lads for lunch and the two lass had to go to the loo, he tried asking Scorpius. After all, he was rather observant and probably knew best since he was friends with her best friend. The pale-blond looked at him in a rather, pensive expression.

“You’re asking _me_ what Erin likes.”

Albus nodded once, darting his eyes at the twins, hoping they won’t hear. Of them all, he could trust Scorpius the most.

“Well, you’re in a terrible pickle my friend. Just asking what Erin likes is like asking what colors are on the rainbow.”

That made him groan, burying his head into his arms. _Of course_. Erin was the epitome of all good things – strange or not. Whatever was given to her, she’d take them wholeheartedly.

“Why the sudden curiosity, my friend?” Scorpius picked on his oddly shaped ham before putting it in his mouth. “Not that, of course, this isn’t the first time.”

He shrugged, flipping through his book. “I just want to give her something, is all.”

Scorpius frowned at that. “Strange, you think that, after four years of friendship.”

“It’s not strange.” He defended, leaning his head on his hand. “I mean, what would _you_ give on Valentine’s day?”

The question, unexpected as it was, made Scorpius think. “Flowers, obviously.”

“ _Really_?”

“You asked.” He shrugged, taking a bite of his ham again.

“How about chocolates?”

Scorpius wrinkled his nose; he swallowed before he could speak. “Too costly. And besides, it’d be tiresome to drop by Hogsmeade, where there’s bound to be students flocking.”

“True.”

He tried to ask for something else but was rendered speechless. _Damn_. He buried his head into his arms once again.

Sensing the drift from his, Scorpius turned to him fully. “Albus, what is this about?”

Albus sighed, lifting his head. “I just…it’s just…” he sighed again, searching for the right words. Beside him, Scorpius waited patiently. “I think…that…”

“That?”

“…I feel as though, I’m crossing that thin line of friendship.” He finally said, running his hand through his hair.

Scorpius blinked, stared at him in bewilderment. (Though, nobody can tell with that ever poker face of his) Slowly, a smile formed on his face.

“But that doesn’t answer the question fully, Albus.” Wiping his mouth with a table napkin, he leans over to pat his friend on the shoulder. “However, make sure that thin line doesn’t ruin anything between you two.”

Just then, he heard a squeal. He looks up, finding Erin laughing so hard at something Scott might’ve said. She was laughing so hard that her eyes looked nonexistent. It took his breath away, just looking at her, and her laughter was the sweetest thing to bless his ears.

“You should probably give her something today,” his friend said beside him. “And fast.”

That made him groan, burying his face into his arms wallowing in misery.

It was going to be a _long_ day.

…

_This was going to be so awkward._

He thought himself for the umpteenth time, standing outside the fifth-year boy’s room. His hands felt clammy, his mouth going dry.

He was so glad that Potions ended early today, giving him enough time for some last-minute Valentine’s gift. For some reason, he was really itching to give Erin something in turn. Thus, him outside the fifth room’s door for almost five minutes now.

_It was nothing, right? I mean, it’s just a little piece of advice and surely, he’s dated girls. Right?_

But the more he thought about it, the more unsure he was.

It was either _him_ , or Scott Alisdair. And he does _not_ want to go through that. That would be awkward. Plus, Scott probably get the wrong idea.

Taking a deep breath, he lifted his knuckles and rapped at the door. A few minutes later, the door opened, revealing his brother.

“Oh, hey Al.” was his greeting, his mouth full of bread. “D’you need something?”

The question alone was already unnerving him. He gulped. “I, uh…” he averted his eyes, not wanting to meet his brother’s gaze. “I need some advice.”

James stopped chewing and just stared at his brother, Albus was almost sweating. Once he swallowed, James stepped aside and let his brother in.

After a few minutes of telling James his predicament, he received a whack in the head.

“What was that for?!”

“How dare you tell me this now! I’m your brother! I deserve to know and should be the first to know these things! Not that Malfoy kid- “

“For the record, he has a name and he just so happen to be one of my closest friends. Also, there’s another reason I didn’t tell you about this.”

“Oh yeah?” James challenged.

“You’re too nosy and meddlesome.” He stated bluntly, eyes narrowed.

James sputtered, silenced by that.

Someone snorted, before laughing full-blown. There was a lump on the other side of the room, and when it sat straight, letting the sheets (and some junk) fall off, revealed Fred. “Burn yo!”

“You see?” he rolled his eyes, and James flushed embarrassingly red. He picked up his pillow and threw it to his (still laughing and near tears) cousin. “Shut up, Fred!”

“S-Sorry…” the ginger lad wheezed, clutching to his stomach. He stood up from his bed and jumped bed to bed to join the siblings, draping an arm over James’ shoulders.

“What did she give you?” asked James.

Breaking from his brother’s gaze, he took out his History of Magic textbook from behind him and opened up to the page of the pressed flower. James and Fred stared at it, a smile slowly forming on their faces.

“I received the same flower too,” stated Fred.

James nodded, eyes still on the flower. “The purple reminds me of her hair and eyes.”

The corner of Albus’ mouth twitched. “My thoughts exactly,” he breathed, folding his book away. “and ever since then, I’ve been plagued by the thought of what she might like in turn.”

“And you thought of turning to me?” the look of seriousness slowly disappeared as James pseudo-cried, touched by Albus’ need of brotherly advice. “Our little Al is growing up!”

Beside him, Fred did the same. Albus rolled his eyes, really the two were such drama queens sometimes.

“Well Al,” James started, having recovered from his little scene. “as much as I’d love to help you, I’m afraid I can’t when I don’t understand half the equation of your problem.” Albus’ shoulders sagged in defeat. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t make the gears in your head thinking.” From the tone of his brother’s voice, he looked up and listened on. “You’re a brilliant wizard Al, better use that noggin’ of yours. And before you roll your eyes at me because you think that that advice didn’t help at all, then shut up first and let me finish. You’ve known Erin, since what, first year? And what do you know about her? Plenty. So that’s something, yeah? And if you think you _really_ know this lass, then I’m sure she’ll appreciate just about anything.” Leaning forward, he thumped his fists to his chest. “Just as long as it comes from here.”

He blinked at that. That was quite the mouthful. Regardless, it did make the gears in his head move. He smiled a small smile at his brother, grateful for his advice.

“Thanks James, I needed that.” Still, he was troubled. “I’ll…I’ll go for a walk.”

James nodded, watching his brother leave their dorm, mentally wishing him luck.

Once he was out of sight, he released a heavy sigh.

“Our little Al is growing up so fast, eh?” remarked Fred.

“Yeah.”

…

The talk with James may not have helped him at all, but he was glad he talked to his brother. And cousin, who was there for moral support.

Getting out of the castle was like a challenge, with the halls filled with students exchanging saliva almost everywhere. He thought he saw Lorcan snogging with a dark-haired girl, nearly squishing her against the wall. Thank Merlin he made it out alive.

When he was finally outside, nearly throwing himself out, he sighed in relief. That was so awkward.

Seeing that it was almost spring, the snow had already cleared up. Still, it was freezing out. Good thing he wore his robes.

He began to walk, keeping his eyes on the ground.

There was homework to be done, but Albus was too distracted to finish it. He also figured, since he was out, that he’d pay a visit to Hagrid. He always eased any mood, filling for his parents.

The sounds of his shoes crunching against the ground were but a satisfying noise to fill in the silence, the little joys of life.

Suddenly he heard something, someone humming.

Slowly looking up, he was surprised to see Erin ahead. The last person he wanted to see right now. She was standing on a pile of rocks, looking down a familiar road. Despite her humming, her ears picked up on someone behind her.

“Oh, Albus!” she called, turning to him fully. “You heading to Hagrid’s, too?”

“Uh, yeah. Why-“

Without warning, she hopped down before him, taking him by surprise, and grinned ear to ear. “Mind if I come?”

He frowns at her in question and annoyance of her lack of care for her being, but the anger doesn’t last long. (Who was he kidding?) She then raises her basket of flowers, as if telling him why.

When it dawned on him, he laughed. “Sure, why not?”

Instead of going to his usual route, Erin led him to another way. Which was a steep way down, a short cut, said Erin. It was rocky, too. Albus had a little trouble going down, but thankfully, Erin was there to help, since she was accustomed to rocky terrains from where she lived. “See? Shortcut!” But he was too focused on his balancing. He envied how she could go around like a mountain goat.

She’d tell him that her house was located atop of a rocky mountain, with her grandfather’s creatures surrounding their home like a castle. When they were almost down, he dropped first and reached up to help her down.

After a while, they finally reached the giant’s humble hut. No doubt Hagrid was expecting guests, judging from the smoke emitting from the chimney.

“Hagrid!” Erin greeted as she opened the door, Albus followed shortly after.

Said giant was seated in his favorite seat when the two showed up, he stood and extended his arms at the two. “Blimey, if it isn’t my favorite chaps! Come in, come in.”

Shutting the doors, Erin quickly walked up to him raised her basket. Albus quietly watched from the side as the two interacted.

“Happy Valentine’s day, Hagrid!”

“Aw, shucks. You shouldn’t have.” The giant blushed, large fingers gently brushing over the flowers. “Thank you,” he said sincerely. Erin set her basket on the table, rushing up to give him a hug. He chuckled, patting her back gently. “’fraid I don’t have anything to put in.”

“I’m sure you’ll find something,” she said easily, tucking a strand behind her ear. “Oh! I’m going to check on Buckbeak II and Marlowe! I’ve got special treats for them, might as well do the same for Safira!”

Before he could protest to come along, she was already out the door.

He didn’t even blink, and she was already out. “Geez, Erin…” he said with a sigh, running a hand through his hair.

Hagrid laughed heartily, checking his cabinet for something to put the flowers in. He then settled for an old kettle pot.

“She’s a sweet girl,” Hagrid said.

“Yeah she is,” he agrees, collapsing on the couch behind him. “so terribly sweet.”

As he busied himself with the flowers, the giant can’t help but ask. “So, what’d you give her?”

Albus wished he hadn’t asked that.

Feeling his cheeks burn, Albus avoided the giant’s stare. Noticing this, Hagrid narrowed his eyes and stared at the young lad. “You didn’t give her anything?”

“I-I didn’t know what to give her!” Albus sputtered defensively.

That surprised both of them, Albus’s tone and his response.

Setting the pot on his table, he turned to her. “Golly, so you _were_ planning on getting her something?” it almost sounded like he was teasing the poor boy but was thickened out by his curiosity.

With a resigned sigh, Albus nodded, slumping against the seat behind him.

“Apparently, I ran out of time.” He leaned his neck back, shutting his eyes.

“Now don’t you say that, of course you do! Better late than never, yeah?”

“But Hagrid,” Albus groaned, turning to him. “I don’t have the slightest clue of what she likes! I mean, I know she likes pretty things, trinkets, but nothing specific!” he complained, his hands gesturing in the wind.

Playing his beard in thought, he remembers that they had a pack of friends. “Haven’t you talked to that friend of hers – Ashley, was it?”

“ _Astley_ ,” he corrected, his cheeks darkened. “and _no_ , I can’t. That’d be bloody embarrassing. She knows that I fancy her enough.”

Humming at his dilemma, the giant couldn’t help but chuckle. Ah, the prose of puppy love. Maybe he should ring Harry sometime? But no, that wouldn’t be fair to Al. Maybe drop some hints regarding his sons? Yeah, that would work.

“She doesn’t have a specific favorite flower,” complained the young lad, running a frustrated hand over his hair. “last year, she passed around dog roses, which were the national flowers of Romania. She said it was her favorite flowers.” He just had remembered that, and it was depressing him knowing how the day was ending fast.

Taking a seat, he set it across the young lad before sitting on it.

“Al, why _do_ you want to give her a flower?” he asked gently.

He looked up, meeting the giant’s gaze, sighing heavily. The question was simple, but it made him remember a lot of things - the Erin from first year, the peculiar and kindred one, the same girl who has a Hippogriff for a pet, who lost her father just last year, cut her hair, grew it back and styled and dyed it, the same girl with a smile that could light up the room. She was always giving so much, sharing too much, that it made him want to do the same.

Suddenly, he was at loss of words. Not that he admitted it aloud, but the way his actions – dropping his head into his hands, says it all.

Sensing his distress, the giant patted his head. “Don’t worry Al, you’ll think of something.”

…

After their visit, Albus still sulked, annoyed at the memory that he had so much time in the world to study, do prefect duties, but not enough to plan out his gift for Erin for Valentine’s.

Erin was walking in front of him, walking backward while humming a tune under her breath. Stealing a glance at her, he wondered what someone as amazing as her could possibly want. Then again, just like Scorpius said earlier, asking that would be like asking the colors in the rainbow. And either way, the day was ending pretty fast.

In frustration, he muttered angrily. “Bollocks.”

Apparently, he said it aloud. Hearing him curse, the wily lass stopped humming and looked at him, tilting her head in question. “Hmm?”

“A-Ah, nothing!”

He just wanted to give her something, was that too much to ask?

“You look stressed,” said Erin, taking slow strides towards him. “what’s wrong?”

“A-Ah, nothing!”

Her eyes narrowed, unconvinced. She lifted her head, leaning in towards him. All the blood rose to his face at their growing proximity. And then she pulled away, mischief suddenly written all over her face.

“I know just the place,” she said, taking his hand in hers and nearly dragging him somewhere.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see!”

They were walking further and further away from the castle, and he’s pretty sure he’s never been to this side of the castle grounds before.

But he entrusted himself to Erin, who spent most of her time outside the castle.

Where they were heading, snow pelted the ground, but patches of green were beginning to peak out. Butterflies fluttered in the air, along with the sweetest scent lingering. However, Erin didn’t stop walking.

The scent was growing stronger and stronger, until they came across a field overlooking the Great Lake and had a fantastic view of the castle.

“So, where are we?” he asked, not recognizing the area they were in.

They were in a wide field of colors, colors, he soon found out were flowers. He can’t help but take in the variety of colors before him, it was like seeing through a kaleidoscope.

Erin laughed, spreading out her arms as she twirled. “This is where I got the flowers!”

“Where exactly?”

Humming in thought, she says eventually. “On the other side of the lake?” she nods, satisfied at her rather vague answer, falling to her knees.

“You’ve been here a lot?” he can’t help but ask, knowing that the answer was quite obvious.

She giggles, falling on her back. “I’m out a lot! Especially on weekends.” Sighing contentedly, with her arms stretched, she looks up with a smile. “Out here, I feel free to do whatever I want. Out here, I feel alive.” When she looked at him again, she began to giggle and pat the grass. “Come, join me, Albus!”

Though hesitant at first, he found himself sitting beside her, leaning on his hands with his eyes to the clouds.

The skies were turning to a pretty shade of pink, it was a beautiful sight. The flowers looked like they were an extension to the sun’s light. He found himself reaching for one, liking the colors.

He could see why Erin liked it here, it was so peaceful. Of course, there was also the creatures she tended to.

He sighed, eyes on the sky, the end was ending fast. Maybe he should try next year.

Looking down on his lap, he was surprised to find that he had unconsciously began to braid the stems of the flowers. Had his hands moved on their own? He thought, lifting the contraption to his eyes.

A memory came to mind, he realized what he was doing, and an idea formed on his head. Determined, he plucked random flowers and started to knit through them, busying himself as Erin stared idly at the sky.

He studied her head from his spot, measuring the size of her head. Nodding, he then twirled around him, happy at where they were and the variety of flowers available.

A flower crown.

He was making a flower crown, unconsciously!

His family often told him that the bizarre ability to stare into space while his hands were busy doing something else and succeed. Years ago, Lily used to make them when they were at the family house, he watched her make them and later found himself making them with her.

While working on the stem, he can’t help but grunt aloud when it snapped in two, earning Erin’s attention.

“Oh, what is that?” she asked curiously, sitting up, her eyes wide.

She was there, this was for him. And the thought burned with him as he worked furiously.

Smiling, he winked at her. “You’ll see.”

Piquing her curiosity, she crawled up to him, watching his fingers swiftly move. “Such nimble fingers,” Erin commented, enough to fuel his drive. As he made some finishing touches, he stares at it – the masterpiece he just made. It was perfect.

Smiling, he stares at his masterpiece, and then at Erin, who blinked in question.

Without a word, he leaned towards her and gently placed it on her head.

It looked perfect on her.

“Happy Valentine’s day, Erin.”

Erin gasped, darting her eyes from him to the flower crown on her head. She shook with excitement before smiling at him.

“Thank you Albus!” she threw her arms at him, taking him by surprise. “I love it!”

When she broke away, he was red as a beet. Thank god for the sunset basking on his face, otherwise, she would have noticed.

With her pixie-like appearance, the field of flowers surrounding them, and the sunset, she truly looked like she belonged. His breath caught on his throat, and his heart thumped wildly against his chest.

Eyeing her bag, he discreetly reached for it, fished through her things. After coming across that one object, he quickly took it out. As discreetly as he could, he took a photo of her; she was too busy adoring the flower crown on her head to notice.

Dropping the camera, while taking the developed picture, his eyes kept on Erin.

It was then that Albus realized, that in his four years in Hogwarts and in his fourteen years of existence, that there was a thin line between friendship and attraction. And he was already crossing it.


	10. Fifth Year: Shaken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Fifth Year: Shaken]_ **

Albus liked Defense Against the Dark Arts, just like his family (with the exception of their mother). It was no secret that he – well, the Potter siblings, really – was especially proficient in this subject, and how advanced he was. Maybe it was because their father had trained them at an early age or maybe because even though the chances of evil lurking were slim nowadays, the class was still beneficial, rushing the adrenaline in him.

“What is your greatest fear?” asked their professor – Phoebe de Fer, casually pacing before her students.

He, and the rest of the fifth years, were lined up in five rows. He stood second to Jesse Hofferman from Hufflepuff.

de Fer was discussing today’s topic – fear.

“Fear is a four-letter word, children.” she said, taking slow strides, arms folded behind her. “Fear is what keeps us in the shadows, what paralyzes us, what makes us weak.” Slowly, the corner of her lips lifted into a smile. “There is nothing to fear but fear itself, they say.”

Boggarts, in particular, was just that – fear.

They took form of one’s greatest fear.

Following her predecessor’s example, she kept the tradition of having students line up and face their fears, even for a while.

It had been a fun class, which was strange because Professor de Fer was quite stoic.

Albus had a fair fear of clowns.

Astley’s was of spiders.

Lorcan’s was of snakes. (Scorpius and Astley laughed at this)

Lysander’s was of ventriloquist dolls.

Scorpius’ was of his grandfather.

He had no idea what Erin’s was, being that she missed class that day. And the funny thing was, she seemed to miss it on purpose.

And so being of sound mind, and because he was free of any responsibilities, he went to the one place he knows he’ll find her.

Thank god it was Friday.

Reaching the Forbidden Forest, he was greeted by Buckbeak II at the fork of the forest. He bowed at her, who bowed in turn. Getting in deeper, he was met with fairies, giggling, and pointing at him, he ignored them, following the path Erin would take. Hearing a rustle to his side, a herd of unicorn appeared. He let them pass, trotting in their wake.

It was no secret that every once in a while, he’d tag along with Erin during the weekends, hanging out with both the Magical Creatures and her, for obvious reasons. And each experience was something, sometimes, earning him a bruise, scratch and near broken limb. It was all experiences worth skipping Hogsmeade trips.

Finally reaching the edge of the forest, he found Erin, sitting on a rock while Marlowe rested beside her. The hippogriff was probably asleep, with the trickling river lulling it to sleep. Above them was Safira, conquering the skies, her white feathers camouflaging with the clouds.

Erin was in her uniform, her purple-dyed hair tied into a low ponytail behind her back. There was a familiar book in her lap, he noticed, and she so fixated on it. He knew to be the one thing she’ll never get tired of reading over and over again. Her purple hues danced along the lines, her thin fingers tracing the pages. He can’t help but marvel at her hunger to know more about the unknown creatures that linger in the wizardry world, how she’s always willing to know more.

Putting his hands on his pockets, he was just about to open his mouth when he felt something nudge his back. Looking over his shoulder, he found nothing. But then it came again, and it felt sharp, like twigs.

“Albus?” Erin called, looking up from her book.

It came again, nudging at his stomach. But there was nothing in front of him but the path he took, littered with leaves. He was sure there was something.

Behind him, he heard her snapping the book shut, followed by her careful footsteps towards him. When she was beside him, she followed his gaze and laughed, much to his surprise.

She reached out her hand, towards the direction of the unseen object – a creature, maybe – nudging him. He was about to stop when he heard the grass moving like something had moved to Erin’s side.

“W-What…?”

“There, there, you.” She cooed, resting her head against the unseen object – or in this case, a creature.

Puzzled, he gently followed Erin’s actions earlier and was shocked when he felt something against his fingers – something smooth and slippery, but it was also velvety. It was a creature, alright.

“What is…?”

With her head still against the unseen creature, she looks up with those big eyes of hers. “Thestrals.”

Thestrals, he remembered them during Hagrid’s last discussion. He recalled during his second year, when he and his family took the carriage, he was curious to what was pulling them when Rose told him. Curiously, he let his hands glide across its head, towards its spine, feeling the ridges of bones.

“You’re tickling it!” cried Erin, making Albus stop and drop his hand. “Alright, sit!” something then landed on the ground, Erin followed suit. “There’s a good boy!” she clapped her hands, keeping her eyes on the unseen creature. She then tapped her lap twice, and then the thestral landed its head on her lap. By the size of it, it must be a young fowl.

“I wonder why you’re all alone.” She cooed, running her fingers on its head. The gesture made him smile; Erin would make an amazing magizoologist alright, with her dotting nature with the creatures.

“Trust you to know what it is.” he said, casually, he sat next to her. “We missed you in class today.”

She turned to him, smiling shyly. “I overslept!”

He arched a brow at that. “We only have one class and it’s on the sixth period.”

Gasping, she lifted her hands to her mouth. “Really? I thought it read 6 am! I mean, who would dare come to class that early?” she huffed, hands on her hips.

“Who would dare come to a midnight class?” he countered.

They laughed at that. Time may have passed, and things may have changed, but her naiveté and silliness hasn’t. He made her smile, how it never fails to make his heart skip a beat. Mentally, he patted himself for a job well done – keeping composure at her antics.

“Don’t worry, I bet Astley’ll fill you up on what you missed.”

“Hmm…” she hummed, returning her attention to the creature on her lap. “Oh, I think he fell asleep.”

Staring at her lap, where the thestral laid its head, out of curiosity he asked. “How can you see them?”

Erin winced; her expression fell slightly before regaining her composure. She bit her lip, releasing it afterward to say in a small voice: “Only those who’ve seen death at least once, and accepted the reality of death, can see them.”

Albus’ eyes widened. “O-Oh, I’m sorry-“

She shook her head, a small smile on her lips. “It’s okay, you didn’t mean it.”

 _Her mother._ He remembered she died when Erin was younger. Bile formed on his stomach at the thought of it.

Great, just when he made her smile, now, he’s made her sad.

“They say that they’re omens of bad luck and misfortune just because only those who’ve seen death can see them. But I think otherwise. I think they appear to those who’ve seen death because it’s a reality – people come and go, and they’re there to say, ‘it’s alright,’ and they’re grieving with us.”

“That’s beautiful,” he said quietly, surprised at her grim yet poignant words.

“Hmm,” her hands returned to the creature’s head, stroking it as it slept. “death is a reality; one we all fear to accept. It’s man’s greatest fear.”

“You just summed up today’s lesson.”

“Thank goodness then.”

A cool breeze wafted, brushing Erin’s wayward hair. She tucked them behind her ear, her eyes still on the sleeping creature, even though they’ll just slip away again. He so badly wanted to tuck them for her.

Peering up at him, she suddenly laughed.

His brows furrowed together, eyes narrowing. “What is it?”

Biting down her lip, she took the ends of her ponytail and played with the ends of her dyed hair. “Remember that one time you complimented my hair? That you said it made me look like Snow White?”

“Yes.” He had no idea where she was going with this.

“Well, I just noticed how adorably unkempt your hair is!” she giggled to herself, covering her mouth with one hand.

Surprised, he couldn’t help the blush that rose to his face. Albus ran a hand through his hair, attempting to fix it. But when that didn’t help, Erin took it upon herself, carefully leaning towards him and ruffled her thin fingers through his thick hair.

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it; I just think it’s an adorable shade of raven.”

 _Touché_ , he thought, _four years too late_.

…

“ _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ by Newt Scamander.” He read the cover aloud.

“That’s my favorite book in the whole wide world!” Erin declared.

They were at the Ravenclaw table. The moment the two arrived back at the castle, Astley hurriedly asked her where she was and where she had been, followed by the twins and her brother. Scorpius merely recognized her presence and quietly sat down.

“It’s the _only_ book in your life, you mean.” Her brother, Scott remarked, flipping through the pages of his Charms textbook.

Erin shoved him playfully. “Oh, hush you!”

Scamander. That must mean the twins’ grandfather. He can remember Erin telling him of the time when she pegged the twins to have their grandfather sign her book. Curiously, he flipped the book open and found his signature, along with the message of ‘ _To dear little Erin, have I made you happy now? May your curious mind take you to places and meet all sorts of wonderful creatures!’_ ’

“Yeash, way to remind us of the time you begged us over and over and _over_ again for grandpa’s signature.” Said Lysander, resting his palm against his cheek.

“Those were the days,” Lorcan said with a shudder, reminiscing with his twin. “she’d wait for us outside our room and beg and beg and beg and beg- “

“-on and on and on and on and on, with the begging!”

“It’s a wonder how we’re even friends.”

Astley appeared then, putting a bowl of something in front of Erin.

“Chips!” she cried happily at the sight of it, completely ignoring the twins.

“Where have you been?” Scott asked Astley, who in turn showed a letter. He nodded at that and turned to his notes. Albus eyed the two in heated interest, but his attention soon returned to Erin.

She took a piece and put it in her mouth, moaning in delight with her eyes shut, as if savoring the moment.

Albus watched as she shoved more chips into her mouth, almost comically resembling a chipmunk.

Yet, she looked adorable. _Too adorable._

“Albus?”

“E-Erin?” he wished he hadn’t been too obvious for staring at her. From the corner of his eye, he swore he saw Scorpius smirk against his textbook.

She lifted a chip to him. “Chip?” she offered with a messy smile.

…

Erin had been strangely quiet all day, Monday.

He wondered if it was because Scott was graduating this year, James has mentioned it when they met the Alisdair siblings earlier. Or was it because Marlowe was sick? (According to Scott) Or was it when Astley strode towards the siblings with today’s paper in hand?

“Look at this,” she said. It had intended to be for Scott, but hearing her best friend’s voice, curiosity took over her. Instantly, Erin paled.

The headlines read of a prison riot at Azkaban had occurred and that a few had managed to escape.

Scott turned to his sister worriedly, whose eyes were still on the paper. Putting his hand on his sister’s shoulder, he pulled her to him, making her lean against him; and pressed a quick kiss on her forehead – assuring her, anchoring her.

“I’m sorry,” Astley said, disintegrating the paper with a quick spell.

He had no idea how the events of today affected her so.

She was inattentive, lost. Her friends became worried, even the ghosts and paintings she normally conversed with noticed her lack of energy.

For the rest of class, she just spaced out, looked deep into space.

Come lunch, they found her at the Ravenclaw table, staring deep into space as her nails drummed through the wooden table.

“Are you alright, Erin?” asked Scorpius. She looked a bit peaky. In fact, she didn’t seem to hear him. It took Astley’s soft nudge to break her out of her reverie. She jumped in surprise.

“H-Huh, what?” looking up to meet Albus’ eyes, she tried to smile. “Y-Yeah, I am! I am, I am!” she even laughed, but it was obviously forced.

But even he could tell that she wasn’t. He didn’t press but offered her a plateful of chips. She smiled gratefully, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

After lunch, an announcement came saying that everyone was invited to a special event later after dinner. Nobody knew why, but it stirred up excitement from the students.

Dinner was a fast event, for students quickly stepped out while House heads, Head boys and girls, and prefects were setting up the Great Hall, leaving the students to wait outside. It was a buzz outside, the group wondered what was going on inside.

The twins had joked that maybe they brought down Fluffy, the three-headed dog, which was an attempt to make Erin smile. Though, they were rewarded with a feeble one.

The double doors then opened, Scott, being one of the head boys, welcomed the students and invited them in.

Upon re-entering, instead of the four house tables, replacing it was one long platform that stretched across the room. They were greeted by two head boys from Hufflepuff and Slytherin who asked for their wands. Astley asked why but was answered with silence.

He met his family up ahead, Lily waving at him. He nodded at them, and then turned to his friends.

“I’ll just…” they all nodded in knowing, save for Erin, who held unto Astley’s coat.

“We’ll be with Scott,” said Astley, before leading she and the group to the other side. He watched them going through the sea of students until they met Scott, his eyes stuck on a particular girl.

Turning to his heel, he struggled to get past students until finally reaching his family.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“It’s a dueling club.” James said.

“Dueling club?” Lily repeated. “We had those?”

“Yes. Because of an incident that happened years back, it had to be closed. But after the war, the school saw the need for students to defend themselves. So now, it’s open again and exclusive for just about anyone.” Explained James as the head boys set up the wands. When something came to mind, he turned to his siblings, the corner of his mouth twitched. “Did you know dad and Scorpius’ dad fought before?”

“Really?” Lily was curious. “Who won?”

“Dad, of course.” James said smugly, nose in the air. “And I’m sure, that if any of us get called gets to prove that we _are_ Dad’s children.”

“That sounds sort of biased, don’t you think?” Albus tells his brother with a frown.

But James only snickered, exchanging glances with Fred.

Professor de Fer explained to the students the dueling club was now open and exclusive to all, affirming James’ statement, and that they were called for a demonstration on what they’ll be doing specifically in the club. First off, it would be Professor Lupin versus Professor Aldama from Muggle Studies. Obviously, Professor de Fer showed to be the far superior with her quick use of offensive and defensive, Professor Aldama managed to hold her own with defensive and non-verbal spells, but in the end, it was Professor de Fer who came out as the victor. Students clapped eagerly, a buzz of excitement filled the hall.

The dueling club has been a ground to test the student’s capability to defend themselves, especially for aspiring Aurors. Also, it was a sort of sportsmanship and show-off of skills. As the whole student body was called for, they had a chance to showcase their skills. Three trials for the selected students.

Everyone’s wands that were collected and placed at a wheel by the side. Above it, a sort of contraption could recognize the owner of the wand and yell its name, he was fairly sure it was a new invention.

A Hufflepuff prefect stood by wheel and turned it, and everyone held their breath.

The first duelers composed of a scrawny dark-haired lad from Hufflepuff and a redhead girl from Slytherin. The redhead walked up haughtily, smirking at the lad. Despite his appearance, the Hufflepuff lad proved to be a promising and skilled duelist, coming for her spell after spells that she barely had time to react and conjure her own. In the end, the redheaded girl from Slytherin lost, angrily stomping away from the platform. Across the room, Albus swore he saw Scorpius and Astley exchange amused looks.

The second time the wheel turned, his family held their breaths. Albus took note of how they wanted to be a part of it, even if they weren’t sure if they’d join the club or not. Surely, they must be a competitive lot.

The next duelers were a dark-skinned girl from Ravenclaw and an Asian girl from Slytherin. He knew the dark-skinned girl to be the captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, though he wasn’t entirely sure of her name. When the two dueled, it was clear that they were equally skilled, countering spell for spell. No doubt, they were rightful Ravenclaw and Slytherin. The match came to a draw and the two shook hands.

 _Now that’s sportsmanship,_ he thought to himself watching the two parted ways, their friends celebrating at their return.

“Albus Potter.” The sound of his name took him by surprise, making him look up.

The wheel stopped had at his wand, earning shrieks from his family. Well, he _was_ a skilled duelist and all, so this must be a walk in the park for him.

He was about to walk up the platform when the name of his opponent turned up.

“Erin Alisdair.”

Albus froze at the sound of her name, behind him, he could have sworn he heard Lily gasp, his other cousins murmuring amongst themselves.

He looked up, watching as a surprised look crossed her face. Beside her, Astley looked ready to take her place but was held back by Scorpius. Not that he was against the idea, but he knew that what’s done is done, and they can’t do anything about it. The twins caught Erin, as she took a step back in surprise.

Albus was readying to climb, pale in the face, whispers began to fill – almost half the population knew the two to be close friends, some subjected on Erin’s lack of presence as he stood by the stairs waiting.

Just then, Scott appeared before them, disregarding the murmurs of everyone. Gently, he led his sister to the platform. Before letting her go, he allowed a gentle kiss on her forehead, and a hug, before watching her go.

Erin climbed up the stage with a look that seemed eager, yet scared. He felt someone grab his hand; he looked up to find Lily looking at him worriedly, James, and the rest of their family right next to him.

“Good luck.”

Climbing up, he took his wand, gripping it tight, and his mouth in a tight line.

“Wands at the ready!”

He noted that she took a deep breath as if to calm herself down. He knew Erin too well, aside from being a brilliant witch who adored magical creatures; she absolutely hated violence in any form. In all his years of knowing her, it was pretty obvious that she was a pacifist. Very rarely were the chances you would see her angry or to hex someone or something. Every form of anger or hate thrown at her, she just laughed it off or rekindled them with kindness. Though it was ironic that her parents worked as an Auror, but he was told that her parents had always kept it from Erin, her mother retired early to be a magizoologist.

He looked straight into her violet hues.

At the signal, incidentally he cast a ‘ _Stupefy’_ of which she countered quickly, clumsily. Students awed in place. He could see her friends – Astley, Lorcan and Lysander, Scorpius, and her brother, Scott, watching, all particularly worried for her. Scott, most especially.

Albus connoted that she was shaking; he wondered if she noticed it. With every spell cast, she’d wince, body jerking. Scott’s hands balled into fists, Astley putting a hand on his arm, Scorpius and the twins eyeing the two worriedly.

A few spells later, Albus clearly showed to have the upper hand, gaining the advantage, whereas Erin proved to be a rather clumsy duelist.

But upon seeing the watery gaze in her eyes accompanied by her now labored breathing, he decided to end the match. “ _Expelliarmus,”_ And then it was all over.

There were mixed reactions – shock, amusement, joyous pride, but nonetheless, he was praised for his skill.

There was a thunderous applause, accompanied by awed murmurs. Albus turned to Erin, only to find that her eyes had rolled to the back of her eyes. He panicked.

Albus didn’t care for their praises as he ran towards Erin, who suddenly collapsed on spot, catching her before she fell from the platform. “Erin? Erin!?”

She was so cold and pale.

“Erin!” he heard Astley call, Scorpius, Lorcan and Lysander not very far. Scott, most especially, had a dreaded look on his face.

Lifting Erin in his arms, he hurriedly got off the platform. “Move!” he called, making way for the door.

**…**

Once reaching the Hospital Wing, she was quickly attended to.

After her treatment, Erin’s body slowly relaxed and she drifted off to a deep sleep. The color of her cheeks slowly returned; gentle breaths coming out of her mouth.

Her brother, Scott, leaned over to brush strands of hair away from her face. Astley sat next to her, holding her hand as she looked at her dear friend, the Scamander twins on the other hand just sat by the next bed, right next to Albus, feeling completely useless. Scorpius had gone off for a quick while, worry in his eyes.

It was clear that she left an impact to every one of them, Albus especially. He took it really hard.

“I-I’m sorry….” Albus whispered, hating himself for sounding so pathetic.

Scott sighed, caressing his sister’s cheek. “Don’t be, we didn’t expect for this to happen.”

“I hate to say this, but I’m glad it was you Albus.” Says Lorcan with a small smile, one that seemed forced.

“Indeed.” Lysander nodded. “At least you knew about Erin’s condition, not everyone knows about.”

Astley was silent but was listening.

Scorpius appeared with a box full of imported chocolate. “Just a little treat for Erin when she wakes up,” he explained. “she always did want to know why Belgian chocolate was the best.”

Everyone laughed at that. Really, Erin.

“Shh!” Mrs. Sprout called grumpily. The group immediately quieted.

He went back to Erin, watching the gentle rise and fall of her chest. She was still pale, having eaten a little during dinner and from the trauma. He clenched his fists painfully, hating himself for being so insensitive. He could’ve back down, but he didn’t! He felt so stupid. His subconscious was telling him that he just wanted to show off, that he was superior compared to Erin. Those thoughts ate him.

“Hey Scott?” he turned to the older Alisdair. “C-Can…” he cleared his throat, meeting his eye. “Can I watch over her?”

Scott raised his brow in question. “Why should I?”

He gulped nervously; especially that he had everyone’s attention. Scott was really intimidating, almost as intimidating as Astley. “To make up for what I did.”

“Albus!” Astley cried in shock. “She’ll hardly blame you for it- “

“Still!” he said aloud, hands balled into fists, ignoring Mrs. Sprout. “I want to make up for what happened. If I don’t, my guilt will eat me alive.”

Scott stared at him, his arms crossed and looked adamant to move from his spot. However, seeing the sincerity in his words and actions, he nodded. Albus sighed in relief.

“But no funny business.”

The twins snorted. That statement caused him to blush, sputtering that he wasn’t that kind of guy. Scott gave him a half-smirk, and in turn, earned a whack in the head from Astley.

And from across the room, he heard a familiar laugh. He found his family, James and Fred laughing away, hearing his and Scott’s exchange. Albus blushed even more.

Mrs. Sprout frowned at the number of people entering the clinic but didn’t do no more.

…

Shortly after everyone had left, Albus slumped against the chair, tired from today’s events. His eyes trailed to the sleeping girl; whose skin illuminated in the moonlight. Reaching over, he lifted the blankets to her chin, making sure she was warm enough.

“…no funny business, eh?” that made him laugh, running his knuckles over her jaw. “This is funny business already – me, watching over the girl I fancy for the night.” A dry laugh escaped his mouth; he slumped again against his seat, loosening his tie in the process.

It sure sucks to be the reason for the girl you like to be lying unconscious.

He closed his eyes, massaging his throbbing temples. When he opened them, he saw, from across the room, today’s newspaper lying in Mrs. Sprout’s desk. Earlier that day, Astley had burnt the one she brought in. He never got to read the headlines.

Before he knew it, he took out his wand and cast an ‘ _Accio’_ spell, summoning the newspaper from Mrs. Sprout’s desk to his hand, however, much to his surprise, this newspaper was from seven years ago.

The headlines were about Rylund Flexler – a notorious wizard who was known to be one of the few followers of Voldemort, hater of muggles and wizards alike. After the war, he was on the loose, hiding, and killing any muggle and wizards who came his way. Eventually, he was jailed by a skilled Auror but had escaped years later. Authorities were yet to find him but knew that his escape meant seeking for vengeance, and he soon got his vengeance by taking it out on his captor’s wife and child. The wife was killed before her child, the child being, to his surprise, Erin. She was only eight when it happened.

“ _Only those who’ve seen death at least once, and accepted the reality of death, can see them_.”

So that’s why she could see threstrals! Erin had witnessed firsthand how her mother was murdered.

He dropped the paper, shock written all over his face, his blood ran cold. He turned to Erin, his heart clenching painfully. How tragic.

Albus helplessly stares at the unconscious girl. He slips his hands under the sheets, searching and reaching for her hand, squeezing it tight.

She’s been through so much in her life – losing her mother at an early age, and then her father. He’s seen her cry her heart out when she lost her father, how much more about her mother? Whose death, she had to accept so early? _Godric,_ he sucked in a shaky breath. _She was so young!_ What did she do to deserve this?

Pressing his lips against her fingers, his heart bled for the girl he fancied. He then pressed his lips against the back of her palm, praying that she’d wake up soon. And because he couldn’t help himself, he stood from his seat, still holding her hand, and pressed his lips against her forehead.

_I’m so sorry._

…

He woke up with a start; he hadn’t realized that he slept. Momentarily disoriented, his eyes took in the white sheets. _Right, Hospital Wing._ Lifting his body, he then stood from his seat; taking a few stretches, before returning to his seat.

“Al...bus?” he heard beside him.

Whipping his head to her, relief washed over him.

“Hey,” he said wearily, rubbing at his tired eyes, smiling tiredly at her. “Erin, how are you feeling?”

“A little better,” she whispered, slowly sitting up, Albus quick to help her.

He nodded, the next words weighing heavily against his tongue. It was hard to look at her without feeling guilty. To keep him distracted, he filled up a glass of water and handed it to her.

Once she’s finished drinking, the room fell into silence again.

“I...I’m sorry about what happened...” he finally says, after a moment’s silence.

Setting the empty glass on the table, Erin fell silent, biting down her lip. “D-Did...did they tell you?”

He shook his head, she frowned but then he showed her the newspaper.

She blinked, smiling softly. “Mrs. Sprout tends to read newspapers from years back,” came her soft voice, eyes carefully set on his hands. “She has a rather handful collection of them.” Slowly, she lies back in bed, purple hues meeting his. “You don’t have to say you’re sorry, you didn’t know is all.” Her eyes looked up the ceiling, one arm on her stomach, the other across her head.

Albus recalled her face, the scared look in her eyes, hating the dullness from her bright eyes. “Still-“

“Did you know I wanted to drop Defense against the Dark Arts?”

His mouth clamped shut, letting her talk.

“Ever since the semester started, I wanted to stop attending that class. These past few years were good, although, I honestly almost fainted during our first year.” She chuckled, mostly to herself.

Turning to her side, facing Albus, her eyes caught on the newspaper in his hand once more.

“Did you know that after my mother was killed, I was scared of magic? Dueling, specifically?” she met his eyes. “It was trauma, really. But after that, I barely looked or touched a wand for a year.” Albus stayed silent, listening intently. “There were times I’d shake violently when my father or grandfather would cast a spell or simply lift a wand.” she shook slowly, hands finding themselves gripping unto the sheets. “And there were nightmares, of him and mum. Mum died protecting me and h-him.” she was shaking violently now, tears springing in her eyes. “I’d see him, he was smiling at me. I didn’t like that smile. I was next, he said-”

Albus thought of doing the one thing he could do; he took her in his arms, holding her as she cried.

Erin rested her head against his shoulder, sobbing hard as she clung unto him. Albus let her cry, she needed this.

He hated this, seeing her cry. It was so out of character. A part of him felt like dying as she sobbed harder, gripped unto him as though he were her lifeline.

Now he had a better understanding of her pacifist nature being a mere cover-up of her immense fear and horrible trauma.

Rubbing comforting circles around the small of her back, he made a silent vow to protect her, that no harm will happen upon her so long as he’s there.

Once she calmed down, he whispered into her ear. “Better?”

She nodded, slowly breaking away from him. There were still tears down her cheeks, she wiped them away hastily. He helped her wipe them away, the tears didn’t make her less beautiful.

“By the way, Scorpius left some chocolate.”

She laughed – a weak, watery one, much to his relief. “How thoughtful.”

Setting the newspaper aside, he reached over and gave the chocolate to her. It was a rather large chunk of chocolate. He watched her break it into two before handing him the half.

He thanked her and ate quietly. Albus had helped her sit up properly, to which she laughed at. (“ _I’m fine, really_!”)

Whilst eating their chocolate, the two talked – who visited who, what happened after, or have you noticed Scott and Astley lately? The last question made Erin choke on her chocolate as she laughed; Albus quickly poured her a glass of water and handed it to her. Still relieved to hear her laughing, the brightness slowly returning to her face.

“Do you know what my Patronus was?” she asked him, handing the glass back.

“What?” he asked, setting the glass down, curious and highly intrigued.

“My mum.”

He stopped chewing. “Your mum.”

She nodded, putting down her chocolate. “Funny thing though? I always thought it’d be dragons. I loved dragons.” Twitching her mouth, she took a bite of her chocolate again.

“Why do you think it was your mum?”

Staring at her chocolate, she put it down and sighed, bringing her knees together. “A year after her death, and a day after, daddy came to me…” she trailed. “he told me; I could see mum again. But I told him that she was dead. I saw her die. But he would have none of it. So, he lent me his wand and told me to repeat after him.” Taking her wand out of her pocket, she absentmindedly swished it in the air, whispering the words. “ _Expecto Patronum._ ” Silver wisped out from her wand, a figure conjured – a woman, looking almost like Erin, smiling at them both. “Daddy said, quoting a good friend, ‘ _know this; the ones that love us never really leave us. You could always find them here._ ’” She put a hand over her heart. It clenched tightly at the sight of her mum.

_After all these years…_

“Erin,” Albus called out, alarmed.

She looked up in confusion, still seeing her mum there.

She thought that her mother would disappear, but then, another figure conjured. Erin narrowed her eyes at this. But those eyes slowly widened when a familiar figure stood beside her mother, the smirk she knew so well. Despite the tears starting anew, she smiled – it was her father. Her parents. They were both her Patronus.

“Well, he was right.” Albus says, watching her Patronus. “The ones we love never leave us.”

Something landed on top of his hand, it was Erin’s hand. Flipping his palm upward, he tangled their fingers while keeping his eyes on her.

“No,” she whispered, nodding in agreement as the patronuses slowly disappeared. “they don’t.”


	11. Fifth Year: Moonlight Grace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Fifth Year: Moonlight Grace]_ **

Ever since the dueling incident, Erin has sought for Albus’ help.

Defense Against the Dark Arts, he learned, was her worst subject. It’s only a matter of luck that she’s made it to the fifth year. And since OWLS were coming up; she really needed his help to improve her performance.

When they began their lessons, he’d often get teased by his family, who surprisingly knew, and their friends, who obviously knew. Erin, in particular, always looked to hesitate, like she wanted to back out. But every time he’d ask, she’d put on her brave face and get on with the lessons.

Albus figured that they had to start from scratch, just to let Erin be familiar and at ease. In a nick of time, he managed to summarize five years’ worth of DADA lessons in a span of a week. He was smart like that, also, he just took note of the important points. Thankfully, Erin was quick to pick up. She wasn’t in Ravenclaw for nothing.

Utilizing their Thursdays and Fridays, since they had a lot of free time until their lessons, the lessons would last for about an hour or two. It depended really on their lessons. They started after breakfast, because Erin had early morning duties as Hagrid’s assistant, and made sure to finish by lunch, then they’d use their free time after that to either study or rest.

Over their lessons, Erin was shown to be skilled with defensive spells, but never with offensive ones. The reasons were quite obvious, and he never pushed her to do something she didn’t want. Although, she would occasionally ask for him to teach her tricky spells, the ones expected during their exam.

However stern he was with lessons, he was patient with her, not only because he fancied her, but because he knew how vulnerable she was when it came to using magic to protect. He knew she needed time to get used to it.

Most often, they’d be at the owlery – mainly because, he liked the view, the solitary of just them both, and because it had a great space. Sometimes, when reviewing spells, they’d be at the library.

Scott, being the protective brother, he is, was slightly against the idea at first. He must’ve taken her fear too seriously. Thankfully, Erin was able to convince him. He was going to graduate anyway, and she needed to learn on her own. He wasn’t always going to be there for her.

One time, Scott came to him, nearly giving him a heart attack because he still scared him but was surprised when he thanked him. Thanked him for helping Erin. And he was smiling!

However strange that encounter was, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride. It seems like Scott’s appreciating what he’s doing for his sister, like he’s warming up to him. However, his stand on him fancying her is still questionable.

A shiver ran down his spine as a breeze swooped in, bringing him to now. He was standing in front of Erin, discussing about what he’s noticed in the past few lessons, which was about Patronuses.

“Surprisingly, you got the spell right at a young age because you were focused on one thing and one thing alone – your mother.” He tells Erin. October was just about to end, and winter was fast approaching. It was getting chilly. “Now, your Patronus was driven by your childhood and has come to change. And now, we’re going to make something new.”

She nods, gripping her wand tightly.

An owl suddenly flew in, bringing gust with him; her hair flew to her face. She lifts her hands to her face, tucking her hair behind her ears, exposing her star-shaped earrings. Momentarily distracted, he shook his head and looked stern, for lesson measures.

“Now, think of a happy memory while you cast the spell.”

Erin managed to laugh, nervously. “Easier said than done.”

He managed a smile as he circled around her. “Hold on to that memory and use it.”

Drawing out a breath, her face scrunched into concentration as a certain memory came to mind. She licks her lips, lifting her arm and slowly twirls her wand.

“ _Expecto Patronum._ ”

Soft wisps of silver burst from her wand, lighting up the room. The owls in the owlery watched silently, unfazed. And from the silver wisps, a figure slowly began to take form.

Erin held her breath, watching in awe. Albus stood behind her, watching with her.

The wisps slowly filled about half of the owlery. And then, something happened. A figure.

It was big, then large.

It was a dragonling.

“Whoa,” she gasped, laughed, turning to him. “is that really…?”

Meeting her gaze, he nodded with a smile, looking back at the majestic silvery beast.

It looked at Erin, running up to her. He easily recognized it to be a Romanian Beastly, because of its near resemblance to a Romanian Longhorn, but with less spikes and small head and friendly nature. Erin told him that her grandfather discovered the species before Scott was born.

Watching her interact with her Patronus brought a smile to his face. Typical Erin, she could make just about anyone – or anything, fall for her charms. Including him, he thought with a sigh.

…

“A Romanian Beastly!” she said, waving her hands in front of her for emphasis. “Curious, very curious.”

“What is?” he asked with a laugh, looking down at her.

Shrugging, she peaked up to him and then folded her arms behind her. “Hmm, just thinking about my Patronus, really.”

“Uh-huh…”

“I mean, it’s quite fascinating, when you think about it. But I just thought about it now!” she exclaims, putting both hands to her cheeks. “I’ve been missing so much!”

“Hey, don’t blame yourself.” He assures, having reached the main ground. “Defense Against the Dark Arts, just isn’t your strong suit, remember?”

“Still!” she protested, blowing a raspberry, which caused her hair to fly to her face. She couldn’t help but laugh at that.

He noticed, just then, how her purple-dyed hair was tied into a braid. Some of her dark hair were included, save for some which framed her small face.

Erin’s hair was usually in pigtails when she worked with Hagrid, twin pigtails that draped over her shoulders. She left it loose during cold winter season. And one time, when the heat doubled last spring, she donned a ponytail.

Ponytails, he thought, made her look more mature.

But he liked her hair best when it was down, which was most of the time – other than winter season, displaying the play of short black hair and long purple hair.

“Speaking of!” she turned to him fully, taking him by surprise. “What’s _your_ Patronus?”

The question really took him by surprise that he hadn’t realize that he had run into a wall. Erin shrieked in surprise, running to his side.

“Albus!” she towered over him, worriedly. “Are you alright?”

How embarrassing. And in front of Erin!

“Y-Yeah, I’m alright.” He rubbed his nose, sniffling.

“Sorry,” she says, smiling apologetically. “but you should really watch where you’re going!”

“Yes, yes.” He says with a roll of his eyes, still rubbing at his nose. He then pockets his hand into his pocket, the other one running through his hair. “My Patronus, eh?”

Erin nodded furiously; eyes gleaming.

Laughing, he playfully pats her head. “That’s best for another time.”

Erin huffed with a pout, Albus laughed.

…

Out the window, clouds were scattering the sky and the sun was shining bright. Albus couldn’t help but liken the weather to Erin, for always being so bright in spite of life’s adversities. The dreaded OWLS, being one of those adversities.

OWLS were fast approaching, which spelled a high time for fifth years like himself. Although he was top of their class, there was Arithmancy, Study of Ancient Runes and History of Magic to battle. He badly needed to polish his grades.

Bless his soul for being friends with three of the top students in their class – Scorpius, Astley and Erin. The twins were ranked from the top twenty but helped plenty with Study of Ancient Runes and Divination.

At their usual table, where studying was supposed to commence, things were surprisingly eerie, especially between Astley and Scott.

Scott sat next to his sister, Astley sat adjacent to them, beside Scorpius. Usually, Astley and Scott would sit together. If not, someone – like Erin or Scorpius, sat between them.

Albus sat with the twins, darting his eyes from each side. They seemed to act normal, with Erin talking to her brother and the two Slytherins quietly studying.

And it’s been going on for a few days now, but it was only today did Albus take notice their situation.

Not even Erin or Scorpius seemed to have a say on this, they seemed to let it be.

From his seat, he could feel the tension between the two. It unnerved him.

“What happened?” he whispered to Lysander.

“We don’t know,” he said, looking at how Scott suddenly scowled.

“All’s we know is that he’s been like this for a few days now,” explained Lorcan, in hushed whisper. “he just one night came storming in the common room after his Head Boy duties.”

Leaning close to Albus, so others couldn’t hear him, Lysander adds, “He had this dark look on his face, scared almost everyone in the room, including the freshmen.” They both shuddered at the memory. “And the day after that, Astley tried to talk to him, but Scott would brush her off.”

A sharp scraping of wood against wood cut them short, causing the three to sit up straighter. Thank goodness they were situated at the far side of the library, but they could still Madame Pince ‘shh’-ing them from afar.

“Sorry,” said Scott, with a tight smile as he stood from his seat. He began to pack his things before slinging his bag over his shoulders. “I’ll go on ahead now.”

“Already?” asked the twins in unison. They weren’t even an hour in the library!

Scorpius looked up from his book. “See you then, Scott.”

Nodding, the older Alisdair then walked away from their table, waving when his back was to them. Curiously, Albus peered at Astley, noticing how she stole a glance at Scott’s retreating form at the last second. He could have sworn he saw something in those eyes.

Once Scott was out of sight, he left the table in silence. It left the table with an unsettling silence, no one dared to say a word.

Astley’s hold on her book loosened, she looked as though she lost interest. He was almost tempted to return to his notes, had his attention been stolen by Scott and Astley’s situation.

The silence ended with Erin, turning to her best friend.

“Astley- “

“Nothing happened.” The brunette said almost immediately, icily that the twins shivered in their seats, and caused him and Scorpius to flinch in their seats. Astley was cruel sometimes, but never to her best friend.

Unfazed by her attitude, Erin but smiled kindly. “If that’s what you want.”

Realizing that she was being rude to her best friend, the chestnut-haired female took off her glasses, massaging her temples. She ran a hand through her hair, stopping by her nape before putting her glasses back on. “I’m sorry.”

Erin still smiled, reaching over to touch her hand.

“If you don’t mind us butting in,” Lysander started.

“What’s going on?” second Lorcan.

Erin and Astley exchanged glances. Going back to her seat, Erin watched as her best friend looked at each of them in the eye and took a deep breath. Just as she was about to open her mouth, someone beat her to it.

“Scott’s jealous.” Scorpius said without looking up.

The three blinked. And then one of the twins snorted. Astley rolled her eyes, dropping her hand in surrender, before slumping against her seat.

“Seriously!?” Lorcan said incredulously before his twin broke out in laughter. Lysander was laughing so hard that he was almost near tears. Soon enough, his twin joined him.

Not wanting Madame Pince to come all the way here, Albus quickly cast a Silencing Charm on them, leaving the twins to laugh inaudibly.

“Thank you,” Astley said in relief, dropping her hands from her ears.

“The two laughs like a banshee and a hyena combined.” Scorpius looked from his seat, as the two were rolling on the floor in a fit of laughter. Silent laughter.

“Good thing Scott’s not here,” Erin says. “he would’ve turned them into roaches.”

“I’d rather have that option, then.”

“Scorpius!”

“Kidding.”

“SHH!”

Everyone – save for the twins, ducked their head at that before remembering what they were talking about.

“Scott’s jealous?” _So, he **does** fancy Astley!_

“Pretty much,” Scorpius says with a shrug, smirking. “she is a beauty, you know.”

Astley slaps his hands away, tipping her head up against her seat.

“I always thought there was something going on between you two- “

“There’s not.” Said Astley pointedly.

“Okay, there’s not.” He parroted, fearing that if he angered her, she might slip something.

Dropping her head, she grabs the book she was reading and buries her nose into it.

“You just seem like really close friends.”

She says nothing at this, but grabs her wand and undoes the Silencing Charm on the twins, who were catching their breath after five minutes of laughter.

Getting to his feet, Lorcan, puts a straight face on. “Scott’s always fancied Astley for as long as I can remember. And I remember her turning him down after their Hogsmeade date.”

“Aye, ‘s true.” Lysander agrees, putting both hands on the table to lift himself from the ground and into his seat. “But their relationship as friends hasn’t changed since, yes?”

Astley didn’t remark but tightened her grip on the book she was reading.

“Astley has a lot of suitors, y’know.” Erin tells Albus, leaning against her folded arms. “Scott feels like he can’t compete, even if he’s known her longer than any of them.”

“Hmm, that’s true. There’ve been some students coming to me asking about Astley, being we’re close friends and all.” Albus’ face pinches at the memory. “Bloody awkward, if you ask me.”

“I think the same happened to me,” recalled Lysander, carefully fixing his hair. “too bad though, that bloke was a fine one.”

“I thought you were seeing that Bethany lass from Gryffindor?”

“Nah, too clingy. ‘sides, can’t mean I can’t shift my preference from time to time.”

Slamming her book shut, Astley looks up with a frown, not taking it anymore. And because the twins might ramble on. “The point is,” she starts, pushing her glasses back with her wand, her voice exasperated. “I want someone who can prove themselves to me. I don’t want anyone seeing me as a prize. If they like me, then he has to prove his worth to me.”

“But would you consider Scott?”

“Who knows?” she stood up. “I’m grabbing a book from the restricted section.” Just as she was about to leave, she returns with a glare. “Oh, and Lorcan? Find a better place to snog next time, alright?”

Said blonde pointed at himself, feigning innocence despite the urge to snicker. His twin, too.

…

The first snow still hadn’t reached Hogwarts, which was strange considering that it was the first of November.

The clouds, though, were somber, signaling a rain that was bound to come later, just shying from the bright and blue sky, teasing the students with the illusion of a bright and sunny day, just perfect for the weekend.

Dark clouds, depressing and somber, mirrored Albus’ mood as he walked down the hall, sluggishly telling the fat lady the password.

His family noticed this the moment he entered the common room, trying to goad him into telling his problems. But he wouldn’t budge; this was _his_ headache after all.

That aside, as it turns out, Scott and Astley were friends again just three days after, and two days before the OWLS.

“So, how’d you do?” his brother, James, asked when he entered the common room.

Slumping against the couch, he tugged at his tie and said aloud, “I received an OWL in all my subjects.”

Two weeks of OWLS!

It was complete torture alright, especially when it came to his worst subjects. Defense Against the Dark Arts, both written and practical, exceeded his expectations. Professor de Fer was a no-nonsense professor, so he expected the same to go for her exams. He was worried about Erin though, especially during practical. She did seem shaken afterwards, but nevertheless, alright.

Thank Godric Care of Magical Creatures came afterwards, lifting Erin’s spirits. That exam was like a walk in the park, because of how easy it was (thanks to the Alisdair siblings).

He just can’t believe he survived the two weeks! He swore he was going to stuff his face with chocolate after a week well done.

“Me too,” said Rose, slumping next to her cousin.

“Good job,” said Roxanne with a smile, patting the redhead’s knee. “I remember our OWLS, I barely made it out of Potions and Transfiguration alive.”

“Don’t forget Divination,” James said with a frown.

“I thought Pompey was hilarious.” Laughed Fred, tossing a box of chocolate frogs to James, who then popped it into his mouth.

“That’s because surprisingly, you’re good in that class.” Roxanne said to her brother, with a roll of her eyes. Fred shrugged his shoulder.

Just then, two third years walked by – Hugo and Lily, who sat next to their siblings.

“There, there, Al.” said Lily, patting her brother’s shoulders. He, in turn, took a pillow and covered his face. Rose, on the other hand, covered her eyes with her arms.

Comically, the two groaned out loud.

Finally, two weeks of complete torture were over. They were free from OWLS!

“What’s the matter, Rosie? Aren’t you happy you survived?”

“I am,” she says with a frown. “but I’m not satisfied with my Potions and Herbology grade.”

Hugo rolled his eyes good-naturedly at his sister. “Psh, you and your grades. That, or you don’t want to lose to that your new- “

“Shut up, Hugo!”

The younger Weasley all but snickered, Lily and Roxanne playfully swatting him. James and Fred exchanged confused glances. Albus used the opportunity to sink deeper into the comforts of the plush sofa.

“And what about you, Albus?” his sister asked him, missing the curious-worried look on her face. “What’s your headache?”

He only buried himself deep into the cushions, wishing she didn’t ask. And then, he muffled something nobody could hear.

_“I have to buy Erin’s birthday gift, fast.”_

…

Erin’s birthday fell on November 9.

Thankfully, it fell on a Sunday.

It was the perfect day.

No class, no commitments, just a whole day to themselves.

They were planning to throw her a birthday party, just in front of Hagrid’s hut. They composed of Scott, Astley, Scorpius and the twins, and his (meddlesome) family.

They had everything covered – permission, care of Scott and his Head Boy status, the tent, Scorpius managed to borrow from a family friend who worked in Hogsmeade, the food, care of Ikki and the twins, keeping nosy parkers away, care of Albus, and the design, care of Astley. Each and every one of them had everything planned and sorted out, from planning, catering, decorating, to even talking to the giant, who happily implored.

“I’d love to!” he said jovially. “Erin’s been a big help and a burst of sunshine, I’d love to be a part of it!”

Scott, spearheading everything, wanted everything to be as private as possible. Apparently, he’s been planning the whole thing for months now. This _was_ his last year at Hogwarts, and he wanted to at least be there for her special day on his last year.

Somehow, the Potter-Weasley’s were able to get in. Probably because Scott saw how they all adored Erin, and probably because of Albus.

“Your family is strangely enthusiastic,” comments Astley, surprising Albus.

He laughs dryly, seeing his brother and cousin fuss over the streamers. Elsewhere, Hugo and Scorpius talk amongst themselves, with Rose watching over them with a smile. Roxanne was decorating the table with the twins assisting her. Lorcan, though, looks strangely taken by her.

“Lorcan’s at it again.” He whispers to Astley, the two watch the said Scamander twin.

Said lad was at Roxanne’s whim, every time she needed help. The strawberry blond looked more than willing to help her, along with that silly grin on his face. His twin stared at him confusingly, smacking him at the back of his head when Roxanne’s back was turned.

“Ignore him.”

“Will do.”

“I told her to dress nicely.” She said suddenly, strutting from table to table with Albus close by (since he was holding a box filled with table decorations). Albus stopped, gave her a strange look as a smirk grew on her face. He rolled his eyes at her.

“What’d you get her?”

“Dresses,” she says simply, furrowing her brows at the flowers. With dainty fingers, she quickly fixes it.

He doesn’t ask no more, not wanting to know where it came from and the price. Obviously, it’d come from her older half-sister, who owned a boutique down in Hogsmeade. He had half-expected her to ask him what he got her, but when the question didn’t come, he inwardly sighed in relief.

…

“ _Surprise_!”

Erin looks shocked, in a happy way, pressing her hands to her cheeks. Clearly not expecting the tent in front of Hagrid’s, nor suspecting it, to hold her family and friends and a birthday party. _Her_ birthday party!

Everyone wore party hats, to humor her. She’s always loved the idea of party hats, shared Scott.

True to Astley’s word, she dressed up nicely for once – stockings over boots, a floral short-sleeved dress, with a white undersleeve and a sleeveless jacket with a hood. Despite her fancy dress, she still manages to retain her image.

Seeing her brother, immediately, she launched herself at him, hugging him tight. Following after were Astley, Scorpius, the twins, him, Hagrid, and the entire family. Each of them laughing as she hugged them warmly.

They played games, even a bit of Quidditch to humor her. Scott surprised everyone with his no-brainer amateur skills, having beaten James a couple of times. (“ _Blimey, if I knew he was good, I would’ve dragged him with us to the tryouts_!” said Lorcan. “ _He might as well bring us the House Cup!”_ second Lysander.) In turn, he received a newfound rivalry and respect from James.

Astley and Rose then wheeled in a sumptuous chocolate cake; Erin squealed at the sight of it. There was a miniature Whomping Willow, Marlowe, Safira, Scott, her, Scorpius, Astley, the twins, and him. The cake, courtesy of Hagrid.

Everyone sang her a ‘Happy Birthday’, Albus watching how her eyes shone with indescribable happiness. He managed to sneak a glance at Scott, watching his sister with so much love.

“Make a wish,” he tells her.

Clasping her hands together, she closes her eyes as she wishes. When she was done, in one breathe, she blew out all fifteen candles.

…

Night was drawing, but it was still young.

It felt like the fun in the tent lasted forever, with endless games and laughter. He had to admit, it was a pretty amazing night. And he could tell that everyone thought so, too.

From the corner, he watched in amusement the interaction of his family and friends. How Scott talked with James and Fred, they were probably conversing about Quidditch. The twins nearly conquered the table had Hugo not scolded them, Roxanne watching them with a smile on her lips. Rose and Scorpius were engrossed into their rather intimate conversation. He can tell that they fancied each other. Lily, Astley, and Roxanne were talking amongst themselves, probably about girly things. All this and having this kind of environment wouldn’t be possible without Erin.

He’s been dying to hand her his gift, but he wanted to give to her privately, without the attention of everyone.

“Ginger!” Erin called from behind him, taking him by surprise.

Something soft and warm, and smelling of cinnamon, was lifted off him. Turning, he met Erin.

“Now how did you get here, you silly cat?” she cooed, earning a ‘meow’ from the feline. Getting to her knees, she gently dropped the cat. “Off you go then, Astley’ll be looking for you.”

The gray Persian cat strolled away, leaving the two teens alone.

“Erin.”

She looked up, smiling at him. “Hi Albus!”

“Had fun?”

“Oh yes! It was the best birthday ever! I can’t believe Scott planned everything.” She had begun to walk, he walked along with her.

“Well, he wanted to. This is his last year with you, in Hogwarts.”

“Yeah,” she smiles sadly, reaching Hagrid’s front door.

Sitting on Hagrid’s front steps, her hands rest on her lap. He just stands there, watching her. Smiling, her eyes linger behind him. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

Following her gaze, a smile breaks into his lips when he realizes that she was talking about the moon.

“Yeah it is.” Nodding, he pockets his hands. “Fascinating, too.”

“I love stories about the moon. Especially this one about why werewolves howl at it.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of that too.” Before he could help himself, he recited the tale – although short – he read not long ago. “Although cursed, the wolf would howl his love to his beloved, who was stuck in the heavens. He never fails to tell her his love.”

She rested her face in her hands, eyes still on the moon with a sad smile on her lips. “It’s so beautiful, yet so sad.”

“Bittersweet.” He supplied, and she hummed, closing her eyes momentarily. Truth be told, it was one of his favorites. One day, he hoped to be like that man. To have that kind of love and devotion for one woman.

Breaking from her momentary reverie, a thought pops in her head. He could see it from the way her eyes twinkled. “I never did get to ask you your Patronus, with the OWLS done and all.”

“Oh, yeah.”

“So, what is it?” she asked curiously, leaning in.

Pressing his lips together, he meets her gaze, smiling lightly. “A hippogriff.”

She didn’t blink. But her eyes widened, amused, and surprised.

“Wow!”

“Yeah.”

She had no idea that it was because of her, his Patronus. And the memory with it, their first flight during their third year, when he confirmed his feelings for her.

“Oh, and by the way.” Taking the box from behind him, he slowly handed it out to her.

“Happy birthday, Erin.” he said shyly, sighing as he gave her his gift. Thank god the two were out of earshot and eyesight.

Truthfully, he wasn’t proud of his gift. He had a billion other options, which had only boiled down to this. He just hopes she’d at least like it. Erin smiled gratefully before taking the gift from his hand.

Hearing the tear of paper, he immediately closed his eyes, afraid of what her reaction would be.

He hears her gasp and his heart fell. _Knew it, she didn’t like it._

But then, a pair of arms wrapped around his neck, surprising him. He realized then that it was Erin.

Pulling back, she looked up at him with a huge toothy grin. “It’s beautiful! I love it Albus, I love it!”

He had given her a moon pendant; its chain was brass. It almost looked like she had a miniature moon in her hands. But it was no ordinary pendant; it was special because it depicted exactly what phase of the moon was out tonight. And tonight, just happened to be a full moon.

He figured that he’d give her that because she seemed to look up to Aunt Luna, she reminded him of her very much, and also, she seemed to like the moon. She was also graceful like the moon.

She looked at the pendant in her hands, purple hues adoring the miniature moon.

“Here, let me help you.” he offered, taking the pendant from her hands.

Leaping off the front steps, Erin turned her back to him, scooping her hair to the side. Moving closer, Albus clasped it around her neck. Erin turned, ducked down to inspect the pendant. Even before she turned to him, he could tell that from the smile on her face that she very much liked it.

“Thank you Albus.”

His breath caught on his throat. It was perfect like he knew it would be.

And just like that, the first snow fell.

Ironic that it had to fall down on one of the brightest day of his life.


	12. Sixth Year: Raging Hormones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot. Similar names of character(s) are purely coincidental for fictional purposes only.

**_[Sixth Year: Raging Hormones]_ **

With the years passing by, he noticed that things were getting harder – academics and his growing fancy for Erin. It didn’t help that she grew up beautifully, gracefully; the years have been good for her.

Growing up, little did she know that she had acquired admirers but were always kept at arm’s length because of Scott, but since he’s graduated, was replaced by Astley, the Scamander twins, Scorpius and him. It didn’t help either when the little things about her can get him, especially when they were together. The little things she did made him swoon, and as much as he can, he tried to keep his cool (especially when around their friends).

He watched her take a deep breath, a shaky one. The grip on her wand was tight, her knuckles were almost white. Purple hues burned with determination, but anyone can see the lying fear behind those eyes of hers.

Things were getting harder and harder for her as well, especially the spells in DADA.

Staring at the dummy he set in front of her, she turned to him.

“W-What’s the spell again?”

Nothing’s changed; her offensive spells were still poor, clumsy even. Even Lily and Hugo could beat her without breaking a sweat. But she was rather formidable with defensive spells, at least there was that.

“ _Levicorpus._ ” He said after clearing his throat. “and remember, this is a non-verbal spell. Sort of a basic one.”

Nodding, she turned to the dummy, casting the spell in her head. The dummy turned slowly but fell upright after. She tried again. And again. And again. Thirty minutes later, she was sweating heavily but still can’t make the dummy hang by its ankles.

Erin sank to the ground in defeat, Albus quickly by her side.

“I think we need a break.”

Erin nodded tiredly, staring at her wand. She was shaking, her fingers chaffed from gripping, she realized sadly.

“Albus, I don’t think I can ever perform offensive spells.” She admitted sadly, staring into her cup of chocolate blankly, the marshmallows sagging. “What if I repeat a year? Or worst, never graduate?” she lifts her head to him, eyes glistening. It was really getting to her, her weakness.

Frowning, he lifts his hand to pinch her nose. Erin squeals at this, swatting his nose away. “Now don’t you say that you’ll be fine. All you need is to practice, is all.”

“But I’ll never get the spell done!” she whined. “We’ve been at it for weeks!”

“Erin- “

“You, Astley, Scorpius, and Rose are the top of the class; even the twins can do a simple non-verbal spell. And here I am, moping helplessly like a Leprechaun with no legs.” She pouted, looking really cute when she did that. “I’m hopeless.”

Hating to see her this way, Albus stood up and sat in front of her, taking her by surprise. Taking both her shoulders, he stared deep into her eyes. “Who are you and what have you done with the real Erin Scott Alisdair?”

Her eyes twinkled in recognition. She did this to him once when he was saddened by the news that she had an admirer. Coincidentally, to keep it from her, Lily was injured in the last Quidditch match. Thank Merlin he developed a skill in lying.

“Where’s the bubbly, high-spirited, lively, happy-go-lucky, optimistic- “the more he went on, the more Erin’s expression lightened, she was giggling with every adjective he’d throw. “positively peculiar,” she scoffed, offended. “brilliant, energetic, and beautiful girl I know?”

He stared at her long and hard, frowning. But the expression quickly wiped off when he realized his last words. _Did he just-?_

Blushing furiously, he hastily took a step back, only to fall on his back. Erin was laughing at him now, adding more to his embarrassment.

Putting her mug down, she gently got to her knees, holding her hand out.

“Thanks for cheering me up, Albus.” She was smiling now, reaching her eyes. “I needed that.”

Clearing his throat, he reached out to take her hand. His heart never missed to skip a beat when he held her small hands in his.

…

Albus was fuming, positively fuming. For the first time in his 16 years of existence, never before has he been this mad. And it was all because of his brother and his meddlesome partner-in-crime, Fred!

What started out as a simple prank turned into a disaster! Really, how was he going to show his face ever again?

It all started when he was with the twins, both had something to purchase. He just tagged along, thinking that he might do the same if he saw something interesting. Lysander was to buy a new set of Quills, while Lorcan wanted to make some purchases (which he won’t tell as to what), Albus purchased a new notebook. Afterwards, they decided to take a quick snack at the Three Broomsticks before returning to the castle.

Upon entering, he found his brother and cousin sitting at the far corner with smiles on their faces. He knew that smile anywhere. And it was, as always, up to no good.

There, mischief ensued.

Once their drinks were served, together with a few others, _things_ happened.

The three were just having a lively conversation when they heard a scream.

From four tables to their left, where it was filled with snotty-pureblood girls from different houses, one of them started to grow a beard. He recognized the girl to be one of Astley’s haters. The table right next to them, a student slowly morphed into a cat. And then, as if all at once, everyone was changing.

Horrified, Albus realized that it was because of their drink. It was a common denominator. He dropped his mug, but he was too late. Suddenly, his body felt weird. He coughed out the contents, feeling his mouth go dry. In front of him, the twins did the same too. Recovering, he straightened up to check on his friends, only to stop. He screamed, pointing at them. The twins did the same. They had been turned into girls!

“You’re a girl!” screamed Lysander.

“So are you!” Albus screamed, too, still pointing.

“Oh no, we’ve been turned into girls!” Lorcan screamed in horror.

As it turns out, James and Fred filled random mugs of drinks with a prank potion. The two watched the scene unfold from their seats, clinking their own drinks together at their success.

Half an hour later, and he was still a girl. His brother and his fabulous sidekick fled the scene, leaving him to his misery. A few guys tried to hit on him, making him wallow more into his misery. Lorcan had locked himself in the loo, swearing that he wouldn’t leave until he returned to normal. While Lysander enjoyed his femme form, off to Merlin knows where.

Thankfully, Scorpius and Rose were around and helped him out of the situation. He felt guilty for ruining their date and angry for his brother and cousin for tricking him.

“Don’t.” he warned them, as Scorpius and Rose bit down their lips.

Composing himself, the blond raised his hands in surrender. But beside him, unable to help it, Rose buried her laughing face on her boyfriend’s back. Still, the two swore to secrecy.

“You’re such a pretty girl, _Allie._ ” Rose teased, lifting his shoulder-length hair.

He swatted her hands, keeping his head low. The couple laughed.

Thankfully, the potion’s effects wore off as they neared the castled grounds. (‘ _Looks like the polyjuice potion wasn’t strong enough if it lasted for about an hour.’_ Commented Rose)

He just wanted to go to his room, bury himself into his sheets, and wake up whenever. His anger diverted to his older brother and cousin. It’ll take a lot of chocolate frogs just to make him forgive them, lest prevent him from writing to his parents about this. But to make matters worse, it began to rain. Godric, he didn’t even bring an umbrella with him! Lest his wand!

He groaned in frustration, ducking his head as he ran, the two following after him.

When they came back to the castle, the rain poured harder. They were running back when he saw a familiar figure – Erin.

She was standing in the rain, her arms stretched to her sides, her head held high as she smiled as if she were welcoming the rain.

Cupping his hands, he called out, “Erin!”

She looked out, surprised, searching for the origin. When she met his gaze, she waved animatedly. “Hi~”

He groaned. “What are you doing!?”

“I’m enjoying the rain!” she yelled back, cupping her hands to her mouth. “Join me!”

“I’d rather not, you’ll catch a cold!”

Despite the rain, he could hear her sweet laugh. “No, I won’t!”

“Erin!” he yelled in frustration, turning to the two behind him who only shrugged in turn. When he turned his head back, he failed to see the two plotting. Rose and Scorpius exchanged glances before smiling knowingly. Together, they quietly approached him, before pushed him hard enough, nearly launching him.

“Sorry, not sorry Al!” yelled rose with a smile.

Albus turned to the two with a frown, but they only smiled cheekily in turn before joining them.

“Yay! We’re all here!” Erin said happily. “Doesn’t this feel great?”

“Sure does,” agreed Scorpius. “but I’ll regret it in the morning with a cold.” Beside him, Rose laughed at her boyfriend, before tackling him for a hug.

Erin laughed with glee, taking his hands and lifting it in the air. He blushed at the feel of her hands.

Though wet, he couldn’t help but remark on how beautiful she looked. Her hair was sticking to her face, her clothes to her skin, but it didn’t bother her. Her cheeks had a rosy tint, and her eyes shone. She was so happy.

And just like that, under the rain, he found himself smiling with her.

…

Miraculously, he didn’t catch a cold (thanks to Ikki, for that herbal tea he served them earlier). That night, Albus lay awake in bed, just staring at the ceiling.

It had been a long, very eventful day.

While his roommates filled the room with their snores and talks in their sleep, Albus didn’t bother as his mind was elsewhere. He can’t help the smile on his face just remembering the day he spent with Erin. Turning to his side, he fished out from his side table his favorite book, a collection of poetry by famed wizards and witches, and took out something from between the pages of the book.

In his hand, he held two things of the same kind – photos of Erin. One was the one he allegedly stole from her when they were second year, and the other, when he stole a moment from her during Valentine’s Day. He smiled, loving the smile on her face. Everything about her glowed. One look at her smile and all his problems just seem to fade away.

In all these years, she still has the power to make everyone smile, to make them feel special about themselves. That’s what he likes about her. And in all these years, she’s never failed to make his heart flutter.

…

On the fifth of September, the castle was in abuzz when the Headmistress announced that they would be playing, yet again, as hosts for the Triwizard Tournament. Prior to that, there were already rumors going about the Headmistress’ announcement, but they didn’t expect it to be this big!

The atmosphere changed as preparations were up and about.

Already, he could see the excitement in his brother’s eyes. After all, their dad did join in the last one in 1994 (before it went dark).

“Whoa, can you believe it’s been years since the last Triwizard Tournament?” says Fred, fists on the table. “15 years ago!” he slammed both fists on the table, causing their plates and meals to rattle.

Annoyed, Roxanne took out her wand. “Fred, we’re eating. Don’t make me use this wand.”

Raising his hand in surrender, the ginger lad says. “Can’t help it, I’m excited!”

“You’re always excited about everything.” Albus remarked.

“Well-” he sputtered, containing his excitement. “Bah! You lot don’t understand me.”

“Agree to disagree on that argument.” Albus says, sipping on his orange juice.

“Well, y’know what? Don’t elaborate.” Fred fussed, filling his plate the third time. “No need to rub it in Freddy’s face that he’s not getting any.”

“What, that Allara girl turn you down?” James asked, referring to Hufflepuff prefect he was fancying.

Fred nods, chugging on his meal. “Turns out, she only dated me to make her boyfriend jealous. And before I knew it, they’re back together!” then, he bows his head with a frown on his face.

Everyone in their family turned to each other before turning to pat the lad on the shoulder.

“There, there. Cheer up, Freddy!” Hugo says.

“Yeah! And remember, two schools are coming over, so there’s bound to be plenty of girls for you!”

At the sound of that, Fred lightened up.

Later that day, while they were walking to the library, he could see that the Headmistress was not kidding when she said that the castle was to be cleaned extra-thoroughly. Students on detention were cleaning the castle grounds, on every crook and nanny, making Mr. Filch’s job easier.

“Hmm, seems like our Headmistress is too much of a perfectionist.” Astley remarked with a wry smile.

“Um, what’s going on?” Erin asked curiously, peering around. Apparently, she wasn’t there during the announcement. Rather, she was with Marlowe, who was sick.

“It’s the Triwizard Tournament.” Rose informs her. “It’s a month away from now.”

“Oh.” Erin nods, watching as a student struggled to balance himself on a broom whilst cleaning the walls. “What’s that?”

Scamander twins filled her in; Erin tried to take in every word they said. The tournament’s history, the prizes, the rules, the tragic events, its cancellation, its revival, there was too much to take in such a grandeur – yet dangerous, tournament.

“Does this mean Astley’s sisters are coming over?”

All eyes turned to Astley, who looked like she neither denied nor confirm with that straight face of hers.

“That,” she huffs, pushing her glasses back. “would be correct.”

“Her sisters?” Rose asked.

“Half-sisters.” Astley corrected. “They go to Beauxbatons.”

Albus and Rose turned to each other, both wondering what her sisters would look like. And Beauxbatons! Now _that_ was an exclusive school! Astley did mention that she was set to go to Beauxbatons before. He wanted to ask more about her sisters, only to realize that they were already outside the library doors.

“Albus.” Erin whispered beside him.

“Hmm?” he turned to her, holding the door for her.

“Will your brother be joining?” she asked worriedly. “Being that he’s qualified and all.”

That question had him worried, he hadn’t considered it much. “I don’t know.”

…

On the eve of Halloween, the delegates came.

Almost every student flooded the castle grounds just to see the schools. Immediately after breakfast, students practically ran towards the common grounds, some even skipping breakfast.

First to arrive was Beauxbatons, in their blue carriage. Leading the way was their Headmaster, Ferdinand Olympus, nephew to the previous Headmistress. Like his aunt, he too was large in height, and had an air of regality.

Following behind him were his faculty, then students. All of which were all too handsome and beautiful, putting the students and staff of Hogwarts to shame.

Beside him, Erin stood on her toes to get a look at the students, probably keeping her eye out for Astley’s sisters. Funny, that when they walked, there were blue butterflies fluttering in their wake.

“Whoa,” said Rose. “that was, uh.”

“Too much?” her boyfriend supplied.

“Maybe it’s because of their perfume.” Lysander complained with a cough, fanning the odor in the air. “Gah, stupid rich- “

Astley turned to him; a thin brow raised as if waiting for him to finish his sentence. Everyone took a step back, watching the two.

“E-Err…stupid, rich, perfume!” he laughed nervously, especially when Astley continued to stare him down before turning back to the crowd. Something crossed her eyes, like a glint of recognition.

Following her gaze, Albus watched as two women walked arm-in-arm, statuesque, and had a regal way of carrying themselves, with a man with silver hair and a cane walking beside them. He figured that the women were his sisters, but he didn’t know the man.

“Oh, did you see them?” asked Erin, still standing on her toes.

“Yes, we did.” Albus nodded, pointing at them. Even if she caught their backs, she smiled.

“What!?” sputtered the twins. “Where? We didn’t see them!”

“Your loss then.” Scorpius grumbled. Ironic that they were the tallest amongst them all.

Once the students of Beauxbatons were led by their tour to their grounds, the carriage left. Following after was a magnificent ship, belonging to Durmstrang. The twins awed at the sight of it.

“Whoa, Erin you have got to see this.” Hollered the twins in unison. “I-It’s…”

Having enough of her small stature, Erin turned around and climbed on of the pedestals. She had a better view from there. “Much better.”

“Yeah, but you did miss Astley’s sisters.” Albus tells her, having followed after, sitting beside her.

She shrugged. “It’s okay, we’ll meet sometime later.”

Turning their attention to the newly arrived Durmstrang, it was amazing to see such a spectacular architecture of sea transportation. It almost looked like a pirate ship. Albus laughed; clearly, she had said that aloud.

One by one, they began to get off the ship.

Leading them was their high master, Igor Karkaroff, who scanned the area with cold eyes.

Almost everyone cleared away when they walked off the ship; they looked more of an army than a school. The air was heavy, as opposed to the earlier delegates. Students who were watching found them rather intimidating, though, some of the female population were already ogling their eyes at the male students.

“Alright, you lot, on to yer classes!” said Mr. Filch, shooing students from the corridor, hallways, and grounds. “C’mon, off ye go! Don’ make me wunna break yer wands!”

Erin laughed at that, hopping off. She always thought Mr. Filch was a funny man.

Before he could join her, he took one last look at the banners of Durmstrang. That was heavy competition there.

Later that night, the delegates were re-welcomed to the students of Hogwarts.

Fred could hardly look away at the female students of Beauxbatons, causing Roxanne to flip her brother upside. He did the same with the female students of Durmstrang, causing Roxanne, again, to flip her brother upside. But when that didn’t work, sent him a Hot-air Charm.

The next day, the students of Hogwarts were abuzz as to who would be their champion. Some feared that maybe the events of 1994 would happen, but some have refuted that. Still, it was rather an exciting time.

“Are you sure about this?” Lily asked their brother during breakfast, worry etched on her face. “Not that I’m against it, but I’m worried.”

James stopped chewing, staring deep into the eyes of his sister. Swallowing his meal, his eyes then turned to Albus, who too, had his face etched in worry. His eyes got him, after all, he has their mother’s eyes.

Allowing a smile to form on their face, he leaned over to ruffle their hairs. “I’ll be fine,” he said. “so long as I’ve got the family on my back.”

That alone was enough to ease their worries, but not entirely.

…

Later that evening, names were plucked from the Goblet of Fire, building tension around the Great Hall. The tension seemed like to build the blue flames, taunting each and every student who vied to be in the tournament.

Almost everyone held their breath as the headmistress began to pluck names.

Isobel Khan was Beauxbaton’s champion.

Hektor Dostoyevsky was Durmstrang’s champion.

And finally, James Potter was Hogwart’s champion.

Although she did show her support, Lily couldn’t help but tear up. Albus had to hold her, watching their brother walk with the other champions to another room to await further instruction.

“Shh, he’ll be alright Lily.” He rubbed his hand over her shoulder. Soon enough, the whole family approached, worried about her. “She’s in shock,” he tells them as she began to wheeze.

“Should we bring her to the clinic?” asked Hugo worriedly, seeing as she was beginning have a hard time breathing.

“Lily? Lily!” Roxanne got to her knees, clasping her hands. “Breathe, okay? _Breathe._ ”

She did as follow, albeit, with some difficulty. Soon enough, she was breathing normally again.

“W-Water…” she gasped. Immediately, she was given one. “T-Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Said a new voice, they all looked up, finding a woman dressed in white and blue. She smiled kindly at them. “It’s linden tea, to help soothe your nerves. If you hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Albus said in a whisper, he was sure Hugo was blushing at the beautiful woman in front of them, as was Fred, and Roxanne, and Rose.

Taking a step forward, she fell to her knees and stared at Lily in the eye. “I know how you feel, about having your brother go in there. And frankly, I’d rather not watch my sister risk her life. But then, that’d be tad unfair of us, siblings, now would it? It’s supposed to be our job to support them from the frontlines.”

Lily nods, tears starting anew. The woman reached up, gently brushing her tears away. “Now, stop your crying now. It won’t do for a pretty face, like yours.” Lily managed to laugh, much to the relief of the family. “That’s better.” Getting to her feet, she left them a smile. “Best of luck to our siblings, yes?” Interestingly enough, blue butterflies flew off at her leave, with every clack of her heels on the cobbled ground.

As he watched her leave, it was then that he realized that that was Astley’s sister. Like them, she was feeling uneasy with their sibling set as champion of their school.

…

Friday morning, Albus was walking along the hallways of the castle. He had just received a letter from his parents, both equally proud of their oldest son and worried. After all, the last time someone was sent in the tournament, had died, their dad said from experience, and of the stories. Still, they knew that this year would be different, knowing that the Ministry has instilled stricter protocols.

Somehow, he had a feeling that his brother would do just fine.

A meow broke him of his reverie, making his stop on his tracks. On instinct, he reached up to his head, surprised to find a familiar cat. He brought it to his face, the grey Persian cat.

“Fancy seeing you out here, Ginger.” She meowed back almost in greeting.

He smiled, tucking his letter into his pocket before snuggling the cat in his arms. He was expecting to find Erin along the hallways, being that she always fetched her for Astley. Instead, as he continued his trek, he found her, and she was not alone.

“Albus! Come here!” Erin called excitedly, standing next to Astley, who was talking to two women he couldn’t make out because of the students blocking his way.

Finally, when he was up-close, he found that the two women who were undoubtedly gorgeous and had strong aristocratic features. One of them had red-almost-brown hair, while the other had dark brown hair.

“These are Astley’s sisters – Sophitia and Isobel!”

“Ah, the infamous child to the famous Harry Potter. A pleasure to meet you.” Sophitia was the one with red-almost-brown hair; her hair was cut short with a bit of a fringe, framing her small face, the same woman who helped them yesterday. “How’s your sister?”

“Oh, she’s okay. She was shocked is all, she’ll get over it. She has to.” He said, in a polite tone.

Erin and Astley turned to Sophitia in question, in turn; she filled them in on yesterday’s events. While they were busy, he felt eyes on him.

Then there’s Isobel, just a year older than them, with a straight, medium length hair. She wore her uniform with pride, judging from her posture. Despite the refines, there was fire in her eyes and a cat-like grin on her face.

“Albus Potter, a delight to meet you!” she says, chirpily.

“A-And you too.”

“You’re an interesting fellow, you. And it’s not because of your father.” Her head tilts, the cat-like grin on her face.

Affronted, he had to ask. “Sorry, what? “

“Oh, never mind her.” Sophitia says with a wave of her hand. “She’s always had an inkling with knowing our family’s friends better.” Isobel giggled.

“So, your sisters.” He turns to Astley, who smiled drily.

Just as she was about to say something, Isobel interjected. “Just two-thirds of us, there’s Lyra, two years older than me. Lyra’s busy with work but sends her warmest regards.”

“Chatty as always, Isobel.” Astley rolls her eyes at Isobel but adds. “Lyra’s my other sister, who works for the International Office of Law. She can’t be here because of an impending case.”

“Erin, have you been using the shampoo I gave you?” asked Sophitia suddenly.

“Oh, yes I have! I always have, you know.” She piped up.

Erin had her hair done in a simple under braid. He frowned at Sophitia’s comment, thinking about Erin’s sweet fragrance. Mostly because it came from her hair, the rest of Erin smelled like morning dew, grass, and a bit of mud. It was all a strange combination, but he loved it either way.

Seeing the look on his face, Sophithia explained. “I teach Potions at Beauxbatons.” Sophithia informs him. “And when I’m bored, I tend to experiment with chemicals and potions, and before I knew it; I can make shampoos, soaps, and perfumes which eventually led me to start a business out of it. Also, I’m also happily married.”

“To a pure-blood, Luka Stein.” Isobel supplied, taking the cap from her head running her fingers through her hair. “You saw him earlier, right?” she asked, putting her cap back on. “The man with strikingly silver hair?”

Recognition fell on Albus’ face, remembering the said man from earlier. He was rather enigmatic and reserved. Sophitia saw the expression on his face and laughed lightly, very ladylike. It was easy to see that the sisters grew up in such a refined society.

“Well, we better get going now. We are rather famished.” Sophithia says, sounding apologetic.

“Yes. Oh! It was nice knowing you, Albus Potter.” Isobel calls.

Before leaving, they turned to Astley, kissing her both on the cheeks before walking away.

Once they were out of sight, Erin laughed, saying that she missed them already. To which, Astley smiled wryly at.

“Wow, your sisters.” He says, gently handing over her cat.

“I know.” Astley replied, smoothing Ginger’s fur. “I love them, but sometimes, they’re a handful. But don’t worry, they mean well, just they can learn a thing or two about keeping their noses out of my personal life and being high maintenance sometimes.”

“Astley! That’s not very nice!”

“They’re my sisters, Erin, I would know.”

“Still!” Erin laughed. “I have Scott, but he’s never as you say as you describe your sisters!”

At the mention of her brother’s name, Albus noticed the change in Astley’s eyes. However, she mastered the art of indifference and fixed it quickly.

“That’s different because he’s your brother. You don’t have sisters, Erin. Three of them, to be exact.”

Reaching the Great Hall, their 8 o’clock was already filled with student’s chatters, moving of utensils, and the occasional flutter of wings. The three entered, walking their way to the Ravenclaw table.

Albus watered at the sight of breakfast, of which, Erin caught. She can’t help but laugh, much to his embarrassment. The twins were already eating by the time they came, Scorpius, being the gentleman, he was, waited for them as he read the daily paper with a cup of coffee on the side.

They began to eat, indulging into the fact that they ran into Astley’s sisters.

“How are they?” Scorpius asked, setting his coffee down.

“Good,” Astley replied, taking another bite of her toast. Wiping her meal, she wiped her mouth before replying. “they seem to enjoy the castle grounds, saying that it is exactly as I wrote it to them.”

“And how _did_ you say it to them?” Albus couldn’t help but ask.

“Spacious, quaint, homey, and every bit of spotless from nook to cranny.” Astley said with humor, causing them to laugh. “Erin, be a dear, and please do my hair.”

“Oh! Okay. I just have the style for you!” Erin says excitedly, already behind her.

Albus watched her from the corner of his eyes, enjoying the sight of Erin move and about. She was just amazing sometimes; it was like she was a miracle worker. He watched as her fingers deftly finished two low plaits, fluffed them before twisting them at opposite ends, and pinning them above Astley’s head. Astley smiled, liking her hairdo. Erin returned her smile, sitting beside her.

“Hallo,” a boy suddenly approached, scarily taller than most of them, he was even taller than the twins! “my name is Ymir Ankov and this is my younger brother, Ylrik.”

Unsure what to do, Albus stretches out his hand to which they take with scary shake. “Welcome to Hogwarts.” He swallowed when their eyes met; it felt like he was faced with a bear.

The rest followed after him. However, when Ylrik reached Erin, instead of a handshake, he brought her hands to his lips. Everyone’s eyes widened at that, Erin especially. Albus silently fumed.

When he was done, Erin quickly ran to hide behind Astley. Ylrik laughed, licking his lips. Albus held himself from doing anything stupid.

Ymir followed after, nearly towering over everyone. However, unlike his brother, he didn’t kiss anyone’s hands (much to his relief). Though he did show some interest in Astley as his gaze, he noticed, lingered on her. She seemed to return the gesture with a half-smile. He bit his lip, her smile grew.

He checked the twins and Scorpius, but they were busy chatting with the Ankov twins.

Just looking at these twins made Albus wish he were taller, or muscular in the least. He was fit alright, thanks to his pushy siblings. And he was alright in terms of physical strength, but these two made him feel small about himself.

“A pleasure meeting you all, we shall see you all later.” Ymir said his accent heavy and a half-smirk on his lips.

“ _Sbogom!”_ Ylrik said, to Erin particularly.

Albus frowned as he watched them leave the Great Hall.

“I think he likes Erin,” Lorcan said to his twin.

“You think?” Lysander laughed. “Did you see the way he was looking at Erin when they ‘introduced’ themselves?” he gestured with his fingers, creating air quotes.

“Are you alright, Erin?” Astley asked her best friend. Erin nodded, slowly returning to her seat.

“That was just…um, unexpected.”

“Tell me about it,” muttered Albus. “ _how I want to hex him right then and there_.”

“What was that?” Erin asked, leaning towards him.

“Nothing!” Albus said, laughing nervously.

Thankfully, the only person who caught that was Scorpius. But the lad merely stared at him, his eyes filled with sympathy. Albus sighed, staring grumpily at his pumpkin juice.

…

Time went on so fast. Before he knew it, it was time for the first task of the tournament!

Three, excruciating days were themed to test out the champion’s courage, intelligence, resourcefulness, and magical ability. All of which, have been altered dangerously by year by year.

The first task dealt with courage, involving dragons, much like the one in 1994. However, instead of a golden egg, they were to retrieve a strange cube from the dragon’s collar. The cube held a clue to the next task.

The family was there to cheer James on, even though he was second to go. Joining them were Albus’ friends, whose allegiances were to James and Isobel. Bets were made on which school would win this year’s tournament. The bets stopped when Isobel accidentally woke up the dragon, sending a blast of fire their way, making them duck.

However, the fire stopped by a margin before them as a magical sphere protected them.

True enough with their efforts to revive the tournament were stricter security measures, like installing magical spheres on certain fields on a certain task. Thankfully, its lessened casualties but gained more budget-wise.

“I’m worried about your brother.” Erin tells him, after watching Isobel succeed, a wicked grin spreading across her charred face.

“James?”

She nods with a hum, a sad one. “He’s never faced a dragon before, has he?”

“No.” he said quickly, sighing heavily afterwards. Truth was he, too, was worried about his brother.

“Do you have time to go to him?” hurriedly, she said. “Tell him not to panic, but to look at her straight in the eye. No showing of wand, otherwise it’ll think of you as an enemy and burn you- “

“Erin,” Lily interrupted, the stage cleared for the next champion, James. “it’s too late. But it’s okay, we have our uncle Charlie, he takes care of dragons in Romania. Have you heard of him?”

“I may have,” Erin’s eyes were stuck on the Hungarian Horntail, with a chain attached to its neck. Her expression was that of heartbreak. “I don’t like how the dragons are being treated, all chained-up like that.” Albus and Lily turned to each other before Lily reached to squeeze her hand. Astley, having held her hand since she saw the dragons, squeezed too.

When James came out, the Hungarian Horntail had his eyes on him, giving James a hard time. Lily had to close her eyes, not wanting to see her brother getting hurt.

However, he was quick on his reflexes and resourceful as to lay back the dragon. All those Quidditch practices finally paid off, as were those dueling matches the cousins had.

Before long, he had hypnotized the dragon to sleep, quickly ran towards it, and grabbed the cube. Just as the spell wore off, the dragon came to his senses, but James made his escape, jumping in time when it blew fire at him.

His valiant efforts and bravery to fend off the dragon easily won him that round, followed by Isobel, then Hektor. And that was day one.

Everyone had already fled the arena, but Erin remained, watching as the dragons were being returned to their cages. Her heart broke at the sight of them. She took a step towards them, alarming Albus as he quickly followed after her.

“Oi, you can’t be here!”

“We were just leaving.” He said to the caretakers. “Erin, let’s leave.”

Her eyes turned from the cages, from the Peruvian Vipertooth, which Isobel faced, the Hungarian Horntail, which James faced, to the Ukranian Ironbelly, which Hektor Dostoyevsky faced. Slowly, their eyes opened, as if sensing the presence of Erin.

The caretaker was physically agitated, a few others backing up.

“Oi, you come back here now!” one of them called.

Slowly, she extracted her wand from her pocket, increasing the agitation of the caretakers. The sight of the wand caused the dragons to growl at her, exhaling hot winds from their nose as a warning.

And then, Erin cast the Patronus spell, revealing the wispy Romanian Beastly to the dragons. She laughed as it danced around her, before going in and out of the dragon’s cages.

Albus held his breath, watching as her Patronus danced around the dragons with ease. The caretakers were murmuring amongst themselves. _Who was she? And why what was she doing?_

“She’s an Alisdair.” Was all he could say, the best thing he thought of saying, walking up towards her, leaving them in shock at the sound of her last name.

As her Patronus began to wane its wisps were inhaled by the Ukranian Ironbelly, causing it to sneeze. Thankfully, he dodged both himself and Erin out of the way of its heated sneeze.

Erin’s laughed echoed through. “Look Albus, it’s laughing!” She pointed. He stared at her, a stupefied look on his face. “Haven’t you heard a dragon laugh, before?”

He rolled his eyes, setting her to her feet. Behind them he could hear Lily, James, and Astley’s voices.

Erin began to smile, melancholically. “That’s all I wanted to see.”

…

With James’ newfound fame, it was hard to get around the castle without someone cheering for his brother, saying they were pining for him, or how they wished he’d lose. The students of Hogwarts were plenty interesting.

It’s bad enough that he grew up with a (sort of) celebrity father, but that was outside the castle. But now…

He was thankful for it, being that his father’s fame came with a few trinkets his brother brought with him to the castle. With the help of the invisibility cloak, he was able to get around, including the Marauder’s Map, leading him to shortcuts in the castle. But this was short-lived after James said he needed the two badly.

“That was rather eventful,” he recalls, finishing a move. He was in the courtyards with Scorpius, they – mostly his companion, were waiting for Rose, who was taking a delayed quiz in Herbology.

Before him, his blond friend coolly scans the pieces, before making his move. “Well my friend, you’re rather in a pickle. Thank goodness my siblings give me less of a headache.”

“They’re six.” Albus argued.

“James hardly acts his age, you’re more of his nanny sometimes.” Scorpius retorted.

“Not funny.”

Scorpius raised his brow as if arguing. “Alright, maybe sometimes.”

Laughing quietly, Scorpius deftly picks one of his pieces.

“So, how’s he dealing with the puzzle?” he asked.

Albus shrugged. “He has no idea. Thankfully, none of the other champions haven’t too. That, or they’re just hiding it.”

“Hmm,” grey eyes scanned the remaining pieces, the game in Albus’ favor. “there’s going to be a ball.”

Albus rolls his eyes at that, leaning back. “So _that_ ’s what the fuss was about. He’s going to do something really stupid to ask that Rebecca lass.”

“Oakley? The Chaser from their team?”

“That one,” he affirms, holding out his index finger. Albus sighed, running a hand through his hair. “he’s such a prat.”

“Maybe he’s just shy?” Scorpius offered. “It’s a classic juvenile act to catch their attention. You shouldn’t be surprised, given his character.”

“Yeah,” he exhaled, biting his lower lip. “I reckon that you’ve secured a date?”

Scorpius turned to him, brows raised and a feat of a smile on his face. “My friend, you offend me!”

Albus rolled his eyes at that; of course, he’d have Rose, his girlfriend, as his date. Why shouldn’t he?

“How’d you ask her?” he couldn’t help asking, looking back at their pieces.

Clearing his throat, Scorpius shares that he simply slipped a note in her textbooks when they were in the library together. She gave her reply just after their Hogsmeade date.

“How romantic.”

Scorpius shrugs, smiling, nonetheless.

“What about you, Albus? Have you asked her yet?”

Scorpius didn’t have to mention a name, being that they were in public. And besides, there was only one _her_ in Albus’ life.

He colored. “Not yet, but-“

“Albus!”

The volume of his tone made him jump; it was rare to see Scorpius so exasperated. Usually, this was caused by the Scamander twins. He raised his hands in defeat, making Scorpius frown even more.

“Albus, Albus, Albus,” shook the blond’s head. “one of these days if your fear gets the best of you, you’re going to miss the chance.”

That caught his attention, making him silent. He said no more, maybe mumbling a few things, as they continued to play.

“Hey!” Rose called, running up to them. “What’re you up to?”

“Playing chess.” Scorpius tells his girlfriend. “Although, _I_ was until Albus lost track the moment I mentioned Erin and played along to humor him.” That made him flush, turning his eyes to the board. True enough, they were just going around moving the pieces around.

“Al,” Rose sighed. “just go to her.”

Beside her, her boyfriend nodded his head in agreement. “Don’t make me say it again, Albus. We only get this chance once in a lifetime.”

And that was enough.

“Thanks guys,” he said, before taking his leave. The couple watched him leave, proud of him as though they were his parents.

Albus decided: he was going to ask her! He ran, in his uniform, immediately after the talk with Scorpius, to where he knew he’d find her. It must’ve been a sight to see, Albus Potter running as if he joined the marathon, but he didn’t care!

Seeing the familiar scenery in front of him, he stopped, resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. He heard plopping of water, of what could possibly be rocks skipping on water, making him smile. Erin sure loved to skip rocks; she was so good at it.

What he didn’t expect was to hear someone else’s laughter – a _male_ laughter.

Looking up, he squinted, seeing two figures. Discreetly, making his presence unknown, he took a path, towards the trees. His steps slowed down when he realized that she wasn’t alone.

Ylrik was in the water with her, his pants rolled to his knees. They were both skipping rocks and laughing at some joke.

The same Ylrik who intimidated Erin after making his introduction, a rather imposing one. Suddenly, here he was laughing and smiling with Erin.

A loud cry resounded above. They both looked up at Safira., Just as she was to blow her rod he held out his hand as if asking, ‘may I?’ she willingly gave the rod, letting him blow from it. Safira cawed, swooping down. Ylrik held his arm out, Safira landed swiftly. Erin was clapping her hands, amazed.

Setting Safira on his shoulder, Ylrik glanced at Erin before he leaned in to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

He felt his stomach drop, making him stagger from where he stood.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

Distressed, Albus found himself walking away from the scene, unable to take it.

He ran, he didn’t know where to, but just away from here. He didn’t even know Ylrik had gotten close to Erin! And just looking at them, they seemed to catch on. He might as well ask her to the Yule Ball!

It must’ve been hours because before he knew it, he was at the opposite side of the lake just facing the Forbidden Forest.

He fell to his knees in defeat, hands limp on his sides. He swallowed deep breaths, releasing staggering ones. The image of the two was still in his head, making his heart wrench. He didn’t want to go back to the castle and tell the bad news to Rose and Scorpius just yet, not while the pain was fresh.

Before him, he heard movement from the shrubs. Out of nowhere, Marlowe appeared.

Weakly, while holding himself against the tree, he bowed to the majestic beast. But Marlowe merely stared at his rather pathetic state, but he was too sad to notice.

Turning his body around, he rests his back against the tree, thumping his head back. He did it again, then a few more times. He really felt like an idiot. Above him, the skies were painted with beautiful colors of blue, orange, and purple; he could lose himself to the color. Almost too beautiful. But he didn’t want to, not right now.

Bringing his head down, it was then that he noticed Marlowe moving towards him.

When she was in front of him, she took one step forward and bowed at him. But what’s puzzling was that she remained bowed her head to the ground.

It took him a while before he realized what she wanted. It was like she saw his distress and decided to help him out.

And so, Albus gave in.

Once on her back, he allowed Marlowe to guide him, seeing as he had no destination in mind. With his time spent with Erin, he more or less had gotten used to riding the hippogriff, finally finding his balance enough to retain when Marlowe moved.

As she soared, he was reminded of his first flight with Erin, missing her laugh against the wind, her hair in his face, her body against his- His heart wrenched at the memory. Marlowe soared higher, taking him to the skies, into the clouds, where he lost himself to the endless sight of fluffy, cotton candy-like field.

It was twilight; stars began to scatter into the night like a canvas. Pink, orange, and purple painted the skies, seeing these colors collide made him smile.

Slowly, the skies turned dark. Illuminating it, was the moon that was his favorite – it was so big, that it felt like he was flying straight to it.

He lost himself to the beauty of the night, as Marlowe flew on, of the cool wind kissing his skin, of the stars that sparkled like diamonds.

“Thank you.” He told Marlowe, patting her head.

For a while, he allowed himself to this. For a while, it was like he didn’t feel his heartbreak when he saw Erin with another boy. Just for a while, he allowed himself to be free.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This was originally posted on my ff.net account (under the same username), but I'm in the process of slowly transferring selected works here in ao3. In addition, this fic will undergo heavy edits - as I was 17 when I wrote it, with little to no care about what I was writing so long as I did and it was fun. First thing you all should know: I patterned Erin's character after Luna, because I love her and she's my favorite character. Though, I did try to make her as fresh and new as possible.  
> Stay tuned for more! Also, thank you for giving this fic a chance!


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